HomeMy WebLinkAbout045 HearonLetter submission
Dear Planning Commission,
Please accept the attached letter as part of the record re your upcoming meeting(s) to discuss proposed changes to Title 18 to
accommodate the new gun range ordinance in Jefferson County.
Sincerely,
Leigh Hearon
Hearon Investigative Services
www.hearoninvestigations.com
WA Lic #1744
360.732.0732 office
360.732.0017 fax
206.240.8324 cell
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Leigh Hearon <leigh@hearoninvestigations.com>
Wed 11/14/2018 2:24 PM
To:Planning Commission Desk <PCommissionDesk@co.jefferson.wa.us>;
1 attachment
DCD comments.docx;
Page 1 of 1Letter submission -Planning Commission Desk
11/14/2018https://owa.co.jefferson.wa.us/owa/
November 13, 2018
Jefferson County Planning Commission
621 Sheridan St.
Port Townsend, WA 98368
RE: ZON18-00036
Dear Members:
Several weeks ago, I wrote a letter to the Board of County Commissioners stating my
concerns about the draft gun ordinance before them, to be included as part of the public
testimony heard on October 24th.
As you know, the Commissioners elected to accept the draft gun range ordinance, and
now the Planning Commission has the unenviable task of deciding whether the newly
minted definition of “commercial shooting facility” in the Title 8 gun range ordinance
requires you to amend Title 18 so that it abides by the new expanded term.
I believe Mr. Hunsucker has described this proposed change as “harmonizing” the two
ordinances. I call it trying to change a legal definition for one reason only: to quell the
litigious behavior of one particular party who lives in Clallam County but wants to
install a military training ground on 40+ acres of locked-in forest land in Jefferson
County—acreage that is alarmingly close to public recreational areas and to the homes
which my neighbors and I consider our personal sanctuaries.
For 35 years, my husband and I have welcomed thousands of people onto our farm to
hear chamber music concerts in our iconic barn. We will continue to do so next
summer. We also will continue to hold workshops, weddings, and other events on the
farm. We don’t have to fell trees, bulldoze or grade surfaces, construct gun ranges or
build military housing to do what we’ve always done. We’re ready and open for
business, just as we were back in 1986, when we first opened our doors and people
began driving across our bridge to see the magical festival environment we have
created. As far as my husband and I are concerned, we will use our beloved property
as we always have.
But if the Planning Commission decides to capitulate to the needs of one developer,
then we will take notice and act accordingly. Because if the definition of a “commercial
gun range” is changed from its current language in Title 18 to encompass
“organizational training for law enforcement officers or organizational training for
members of the armed forces, or any combination of the above,” the size and intensity
of that gun range, a scant mile away from our property line, will be heard, and it will
surely curtail, if not destroy, how we have lived and operated our music festival and
other events over the past several decades. Equally important, changing Title 18 to
accommodate military training on gun ranges in Jefferson County will obliterate our
peaceful and quiet enjoyment of our property.
Please do your jobs wisely and well, and do not exempt commercial shooting facilities
from the SSRT criteria in Title 18.
Sincerely,
Leigh Hearon
Concerts in the Barn
7360 Center Road
Quilcene, WA 98376
Cc: Law Office of Kenneth S. Kagan, PLLC