06/13/20 - A "Bustle in your Hedgerow"

You'd certainly be forgiven if you gave up on this little blog, it's been quiet for awhile now. There really hasn't been much to talk about, until today.

The Wildlife Resources Commission has re-opened many of the outdoor public ranges back up and shooters are already back.  There's a pretty helpful list of what's opening and when HERE.  Three opened today, one opens next Saturday but no date yet for the WCFETC range.  It's bound to happen eventually. Hopefully, we're next. 

As always, we'll let you know if there's something going on.  Be safe.

5/3/20 - Can we fix this?

It's a small thing really but it's bugged me for a long time.  This poor old sign is pretty beat up AND it's wrong.  It's the "Wake County Firearms Education and Training Center" (WCFETC) not "Wake County Firearms Training and Education Center" (WCFTEC).

The sign is on New Hill Road just behind the Target store. It's maybe 40 yards or so before turning right onto Old Holly Springs Apex Road if you're heading west-ish.

I would interpret fixing this sign to read correctly as an indication that the county and the state have not abandoned the range.  I know they have much bigger problems to tend to right now and we all wish them the best with the task ahead but it would be nice if they could squeeze this little anomaly into their range re-opening plans.

We'll keep you posted as events allow.

Ya'll stay safe out there. 

4/2/20 - Maybe it's a sign

You gotta believe, right?

I was coming home from work a couple of nights ago and saw a really stunning rainbow in my periphery.  That it was at the range was completely coincentental.  The old camera on my phone really doesn't do it justice.

Stay safe, friends.  See you again soon.

3/5/20 - So here’s where we are…

Against conventional wisdom, the range will in fact re-open to the public on March 15^th.  The shooting public of Wake County will again have a proper public place (three 50's and a 100 INDOOR) to go to shoot and hang out with shooting friends. 

Let’s look back for a moment and remember that it was on December 15^th , only 10 short weeks ago, that the publicly owned management and staff were learning that their contract was being cancelled  by the Wake County Sheriff and they were out after almost 20 years of service to the shooters of Wake County.  The County Commissioners found out about the abrupt contract cancellation shortly thereafter.  Since that day:

1)      Wake County took back control of the range

2)      The Wake County Commissioners found a different vendor – NC Wildlife Resources Commission

3)      NC Wildlife Resources Commission developed a plan to re-open the range

4)      Wake County Commissioners, Wake Sheriff and Wake GSA developed plans to re-open the range

5)      Everyone decided they could quickly implement their plans and re-open on March 15^th

Now you have to admit that rebuilding all that in such a short time with so many people and agencies is actually pretty phenomenal and entirely contrary to most folks perception of government entities as just slightly glacial.  A lot of people did a lot of expeditious work to make all this happen.  They deserve a fanny-pat in all this too.  To that end, make plans if you can to get your range card on Sunday March 15^th between 9am and 7 pm.  A full parking lot (on video!) and a HUGE number of new range cards issued is an easily understood “thank-you” to all the local and state government folks who hustled a little faster than is customary to get this done for the shooting public.  It’s also a sign to those who are not so thrilled about the current state of public hours at the range that the public interest is not to be ignored. 

 

Send a message, make a difference. A lot of folks talk about doing that. You have a chance to actually do it!

Hope to see you at the Wake County Range on Sunday the 15th!

UPDATE - 1/30/20 - "Sign the Petition" and a little news

Mark Valetta, the man behind the petition that has garnered over 10,000 signatures so far, has posted an update that gives us some insight into the quiet machinations of the county's effort to re-open the range to the public.

"I am pleased to report that our commissioners reached out to the NC Wildlife Resources Commission and are in negotiations to have an innovative County/State partnership put in place. Both the County Commissioners and the Wildlife Staff have been very receptive to the public organizers.  In a meeting I attended earlier this week with Wildlife staff, we were very pleased to have earnest conversations about the future of the range. I am very confident that this range will remain a publicly accessible facility for generations to come.  But we do not let down until that outcome is realized. We're not done until that's a done deal! "

Cause for optimism to be sure but as Mark says, it ain't over until it's over.  If you haven't already signed the petition please do so NOW.  It's important that the Commissioners and the Wildlife Commission be kept aware that there is still great interest in keeping this range and the training available and open to the public.

Read the whole thing HERE.

1/26/20 - No news is probably good news.

First and foremost, thanks to all the new subscribers that signed on for updates.  It's good to know so many of our neighbors continue to be interested in the outcome of these deliberations.

As the title of this post suggests the fact that there's really nothing to report is probably a good thing.  Meetings are no doubt being had, phonecalls flying about, but nothing concrete really.  There's so much potential in that facility. Let's hope we can come up with an amenable solution for all involved.

Stay tuned. 

1/18/20 - Sign, sign, everywhere a sign.

This sign has been there since at least yesterday morning.  It took over 3 weeks to change the public website but they got that sign up in four days. 

Leave Comments for the Commissioners

In an effort to get as much information to the Commissioners as possible, please post a comment in the Comments section below.  Your thoughtful words will be collated and given to the Board members on Jan 6th.  Please be respectful. Remember, we're the class act here.

Where we are right now...

12/26/2019 - We are not out of the woods yet. The county has taken control of the range but, the decisions regarding management and reopening to the public remain. It is important that all interested parties continue to reach out to the commission and show up for the Board meeting.

The next Wake County Board of Commissioners' meeting is 1/6/20, 5:00 p.m. According to the site, public comment period is 5:30 - 6:00 p.m.