Problems with county

[TAB]

If you bring 1000 people into the county every year, it should be pretty easy to play the econ card.  each one of those people have to spend atleast $100, locally. thats bringing atleast 100k  from out side the county, not inculding what happens from the county.  That should be a easy win, even more so if you get a few local biz owners that profit from your range on board to come and speak. 

[m25operator]

Dean, keep your chin up, I like going against commissioners better than city councils for sure, that being said, review the advice you got here, and keep us informed as to the progress. Been through this twice, once as a supporter, the 2nd as a litigant. 1 piece of advice I will give you, if the Nra or Nssf gets involved, remember it is your range and lively hood, do not allow them to take over, listen, but verify. You stay in control, if you get a Lawyer, at least he is getting paid and has a professional responsibility to represent YOU.

I was involved in a multi million dollar lawsuit, our range had NRA insurance and representation, the lawyers were hacks, it was not until We hired a very good attorney that things started getting better. Food for thought.

[tombogan03884]

It will probably take years, and will definitely be expensive if they really want to shut you down.
But ordinances are just that, they are NOT "Laws".  I learned from the guy with the Gravel pit, there is a difference.
On the other hand, if the county is not trying to push an anti gun agenda, simply trying to prevent a repeat of the other, problem range, then there is a good chance that simply presenting your concerns in an initially nonconfrontational manner will allow both parties to work together on a reworked ordinance that works for both .

[fightingquaker13]

On the other hand, if the county is not trying to push an anti gun agenda, simply trying to prevent a repeat of the other, problem range, then there is a good chance that simply presenting your concerns in an initially nonconfrontational manner will allow both parties to work together on a reworked ordinance that works for both .

Damn! Here Tom is the voice of sweet reason. Will wonders never cease? I think you have gotten some good advice here. A list of economic pros to your range, a list of identifiable and sympathetic constituents that use it, a well respected loal lawyer/lobbyist to present your case before anything is carved in stone, and bringing in national groups like the NRA/NSSF to help. Cover all those bases and you should be good (I hope). Please keep us posted.
FQ13 

[tombogan03884]

It's simple FQ, ask nicely once, THEN kneecap them and ask nicely again.
Some one once said "there are many perfectly acceptable reasons for killing a person, but no excuse at all for being rude about it".  

[Sponsor]

[WatchManUSA]

I suggest contacting Deltone-Luth Gun Club in St. Cloud, MN.  Last summer they had similar issues with their county.  They mobilized customers to fight.  However, in the end they had to make concessions to get the deal done.  The concessions were improvements to the ranges and operational procedures.

Jeff Hoppes - General Manager - 320-251-9873 

Deltone-Luth Gun Club
3322 12th Street SE
St. Cloud, MN 56304

info@del-tone-luth.com

[tombogan03884]

I suggest contacting Deltone-Luth Gun Club in St. Cloud, MN.  Last summer they had similar issues with their county.  They mobilized customers to fight.  However, in the end they had to make concessions to get the deal done.  The concessions were improvements to the ranges and operational procedures.

Jeff Hoppes - General Manager - 320-251-9873  

Deltone-Luth Gun Club
3322 12th Street SE
St. Cloud, MN 56304

info@del-tone-luth.com

Randy Luth founded DPMS, he is in a position to KNOW what he is talking about.

[fightingquaker13]

It's simple FQ, ask nicely once, THEN kneecap them and ask nicely again.
Some one once said "there are many perfectly acceptable reasons for killing a person, but no excuse at all for being rude about it".  

That would have been my Great Grandad.
FQ13

[MikeBjerum]

Randy Luth founded DPMS, he is in a position to KNOW what he is talking about.

I only know from talking to one of the range employees, so this may not be the full story:  I learned that it was Randy's sale of DPMS that brought on the issues.  The fact that the range and DPMS were separate businesses was not considered.

Randy is a true "local boy" that is very active in the community.  When I first went to the range I had an appointment to meet him at 1:30 PM.  It was almost 4:00 PM before he showed up, because he was at a water rescue training session with the fire department.  The next day the entire department was searching a frozen river for a St. Cloud State student that disappeared.  His tracks disappeared on the river ice.  Randy was in the water for many days that Sunday and Monday. 

It is that level of community involvement and support that helped Randy do much of what he did on the edge of such a large city.  And with the idea that Randy was "out of the picture" the anti's thought they had their way.  A business I deal with in St. Cloud tells me that the range and "secret operations" at DPMS have many residents uncomfortable.  By the way, the "secret operations" were going on while Randy owned DPMS.  It is called military contracts, and once you accept those your facility becomes very secure and closed off to the public.