HomeMy WebLinkAboutRiley Parker emailRiley:
Thank you for your email sent on May 29, 2018. Below is my response to the questions in the email.
Like any legislation, it is important that the Ordinance Establishing a Moratorium on Commercial
Shooting Facilities in Unincorporated Areas of Jefferson County (OEM) be read as a
whole. Focusing on only part of any legislation alone cannot result in a correct understanding what
the drafters meant.
As noted in your May 29, 2018 email, the OEM does state at page 2:
WHEREAS, Jefferson County has rural areas where commercial shooting
facilities may be appropriate, but where emergency services are scarce and adopting
a commercial shooting ordinance would promote public safety and preserve precious
emergency services; and,
WHEREAS, commercial shooting facilities benefit Jefferson County by
providing its residents and law enforcement the opportunity to learn firearm safety,
to practice shooting, and to participate in amateur recreational firearm sports in a
safe, controlled setting; and,
But the OEM also states at page 1-2:
WHEREAS, bullets striking a residence on November 22, 2017 near the
shooting range located at 112 Gun Club Rd., Port Townsend, WA 98368 on land
owned by Jefferson County but operated by Jefferson County Sportsmen’s
Association called to question the safety of commercial shooting facilities, even
though it was ultimately determined the damage was likely not caused by the
shooting facility operated by Jefferson County Sportsmen’s Association; and,
WHEREAS, public complaints about lack of safety and land use compatibility
issues arising from the operation of commercial shooting facilities in
unincorporated Jefferson County have called on the scarce resources of Jefferson
County’s emergency management system and the Sheriff’s Office, which has the
effect of diminishing the availability of these resources for emergency services; and,
So, the Board of County Commissioners (BoCC) was aware of the operations at current and
past commercial shooting facilities (CSFs) in the County when it adopted the OEM.
Further, the OEM states at page 2:
WHEREAS, the BoCC finds that uniform requirements for the establishment
and operation of all commercial shooting facilities in unincorporated Jefferson
County would provide assurance of the safe conduct of recreational and educational
shooting activities in Jefferson County, provided the regulation: (1) provides for and
promotes safety by establishing a permitting procedure and rules for the siting,
design and operation of commercial shooting range facilities that safeguards
participants, spectators, neighboring properties and the public; (2) does not
prohibit or expressly regulate the discharge of firearms; (3) involves measures
designed to make the discharge of firearms safe; (4) protects the environment; (5)
ensures compatibility with neighboring land use; and, (6) promotes the continued
availability of shooting facilities for firearm education, practice in the safe use of
firearms, and recreational firearm sports; and,
This is the key finding of the OEM—“that uniform requirements for the establishment and operation
of all commercial shooting facilities in unincorporated Jefferson County would provide assurance of
the safe conduct of recreational and educational shooting activities in Jefferson County … .”
(Emphasis added.) Based on a review of the OEM as a whole, the OEM does not mandate that any
proposed—or adopted—ordinance:
Require that only Jefferson County residents can use the facilities;
Prohibit tourists or other county residents from using the facilities;
Limit law enforcement use to only local County, City and Tribal officers;
Specifically exclude the “Military, Para-military, others;”
Require only amateur recreational firearm sports shooting;
Exclude “Professional Tactical Firearms” shooting; or,
Identify who the shooting facilities are for.
Whether any particular limitation (including any in the list above that was culled from your email)
ultimately is adopted by the BoCC is a policy decision for the BoCC to make, informed many factors,
including input from the public at large during a written comment period and a hearing by the BoCC
on a proposed ordinance and whether there is a legal basis for that limitation.
Importantly, the OEM describes the work required of the Review Committee in Section 6.6:
The Review Committee shall: (a) study the safety, environmental and land use
impacts of commercial shooting facilities and reasonable measures to address those
impacts, including among other measures whether there should be an amendment
to the No Shooting Areas Ordinance, Chapter 8.50 JCC to allow indoor commercial
shooting facilities in No Shooting Areas; and, (b) shall provide input to the County as
the County generates and recommends a draft ordinance. The draft shooting facility
ordinance for existing and new commercial shooting facilities within
unincorporated Jefferson County shall be forwarded to the Planning Commission if
within its jurisdiction, or to the Board of County Commissioners within 120 days of
the Review Committee’s establishment.
This direction tells the Review Committee to do two only things (shortened for simplicity):
1. Study the safety, environmental and land use impacts of commercial shooting facilities and
reasonable measures to address those impacts; and,
2. Provide input to the County as the County generates and recommends a draft ordinance.
In providing input to the County, the Review Committee members bring their past experience, the
expertise they developed in the required study, and their individual perspectives that are informed
by knowledge about past, current and potential future commercial shooting facilities. The BoCC
attempted to ensure that diverse views would be represented on the Review Committee, in the hope
that every issue important to the entire community would be considered.
In my view, the work of the Review Committee so far has been in the study phase contemplated by
Section 6.6(a). The study phase should provide a basis for a better collective understanding for the
Review Committee of the safety, environmental and land use impacts of commercial shooting
facilities and reasonable measures to address those impacts. The input phase required by Section
6.6(b) is yet to come, but likely will involve discussions first of possible types of ordinances and later,
comments on draft ordinances prepared by County staff.
Your questions are good ones that will help us focus on what the Review Committed must do. I
suggest that your email and this response be circulated by Mark to the entire review committee.
Philip
Philip C. Hunsucker
Chief Civil Deputy Prosecuting Attorney
Jefferson County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office
P.O. Box 1220, Port Townsend, WA 98368
Ph: 360-385-9180 Fax: 360-385-0073
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-----Original Message-----
From: Riley Parker <rileyparker072@gmail.com>
Sent: Tuesday, May 29, 2018 2:08 PM
To: Mark McCauley <MMcCauley@co.jefferson.wa.us>; Philip Hunsucker
<PHunsucker@co.jefferson.wa.us>
Cc: Art Frank <AFrank@co.jefferson.wa.us>; ShootingRange Committee
<CSFRC@co.jefferson.wa.us>
Subject: Today's meeting
Mark,
Thank you for taking the time to discuss the work of the Review Committee. It was also nice that Art
was able to spend a few minutes as he was just passing by your office.
At the last meeting on the 18th I proposed that we build a scope of work, basically what it is and
what it is not, that we are working on. There is a lot of directive information in the Moratorium
Document and based on the last three meetings I feel like we are not all of the same opinion.
Spending some time to build a scope of work, identify categories and subcategories of work,
identity resources available to the committee and the end product, for which we are responsible,
will allow us to create a schedule of dates and appropriate amounts to time to reasonably complete
our work. As you know there are a number of 30 day periods which others have to conduct
hearings, review staff comments and adopt a final ordinance, after we complete our work.
I also recommend that we establish a processes for asking clarifying questions about the
Moratorium Document when needed, that we quantify and qualify our related documentation and
our verbal assumptions before we make decisions.
Per our discussion today you stated that I should ask Philip Hunsucker about any questions I have
about the Moratorium. Thanks
Philip,
Here are a few questions I have about the Moratorium Document.
On page two and the third whereas it states: Commercial shooting facilities benefit Jefferson County
by providing its residents and law enforcement the opportunity to learn firearms safety, to practice
shooting, and to participate in amateur recreational firearms sports in a safe, controlled setting.
Per this language am I to assume:
Only Jefferson County Residents can use the facilities?
Are tourists or other county residents able to use the facilities?
Is Law Enforcement only local County, City and Tribal?
Does this exclude the Military, Para-military, others?
Only Amateur Recreational Firearm Sports shooting?
Does this exclude Professional Tactical Firearms shooting?
Identifying who the shooting facilities are for will assist the Review Committee with safety, sound,
design and mitigating measures.
Thanks in advance, Riley