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Shooting facility being planned for northern Arizona

News Media
June 13, 2005

PHOENIX-Where does the average, responsible Arizona gun owner find a shooting range to practice using his or her firearm? In Flagstaff, the answer is "far away."

While Phoenix and Tucson residents have several options when it comes to shooting ranges, the nearest public shooting range to Flagstaff is in the Prescott area, more than 90 miles south.

The Arizona Game and Fish Commission wants to change that. The commission is initiating a process to select a site and develop a regional shooting facility in northern Arizona. As envisioned, the facility would provide many types of recreational shooting opportunities for individuals and for clubs. Regional and national shooting competitions would be held at the facility as well.

"There's a need and a public demand for a full-service shooting facility in northern Arizona," says Don Winslow, who coordinates the development of shooting ranges statewide for the Arizona Game and Fish Department. "Given the area's population and the increasing popularity of shooting sports, it's time to move forward."

The Arizona Game and Fish Department is beginning the planning process to find a site for the facility. Department representatives will meet with interested groups to identify needs and requirements, and will begin scouting potential locations this summer.

Once the broad outline of the facility is drawn, the public will have opportunities to review the plan and to provide comment.

Shooting sports are extremely popular throughout the United States. Some 23 million Americans identify themselves as target shooters or muzzleloaders, according to the National Shooting Sports Foundation. In a 2001 report, the foundation noted that "participants in handgun target shooting who shot 10 or more times climbed from 41 percent in 1995 to 52 percent in 1999, and in rifle target shooting, from 35 percent in 1995 to 51 percent in 1999."

Shooters who are interested in receiving news about shooting ranges and shooting sports throughout Arizona are invited to sign up for the Game and Fish Department's Shooting Sports News by visiting azgfd.gov/signup.
 

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