After years of failing to see eye to eye, it appears the Guelph Rod and Gun Club and the Eden Mills steering committee have found some common ground.
On Monday night, both sides came to council to offer their final comments on the gun club’s proposal to operate its indoor range seven days a week from 9am to 11pm. But unlike past meetings, conciliation seemed to be the order of the day, as both gun club president Frank McFarquhar and steering committee spokesperson Tim Laing seemed willing to negotiate.
McFarquhar told council a residents’ “listening session” at the club on Jan. 16 and a meeting with steering committee members on Jan. 21 seemed to be a success. Both sides agreed, he said, that noise from the club’s indoor range cannot be heard in Eden Mills; and most residents at the Jan. 21 meeting were willing to work with the club.
Therefore, “as a sign of good faith,” the club offered to close all seven outdoor ranges each day at dusk (or 9pm at the latest), on Tuesday evenings at 6pm and all day on Christmas.
Laing agreed the indoor range could not be heard in Eden Mills, although he said it could be heard off gun club property, which is a violation of the current bylaw. He called the community meeting “a very good session” that was “well attended.”
He offered three requests from the community regarding outdoor shooting, including limiting Saturday hours to 9am to 3pm, using weekday hours of 9am to 7pm or dusk and no shooting on statutory holidays.
Laing also requested the gun club agree to cap its membership at 400 and that the township review any changes to indoor shooting times after six months.
Mayor Chris White commended both sides for “a much, much better process” than previous interactions. He said both sides have made reasonable requests and he hopes both will gain something from the process.
White noted the intent is for council to pass a bylaw at its Feb 16 meeting, with the following stipulations:
– indoor shooting from 9am to 10pm, 365 days a year;
– no outdoor shooting on Sundays, Christmas day, Good Friday, or during the Eden Mills Writers’ Festival;
– no outdoor shooting after 6pm on Fridays;
– on Saturdays and from Monday to Thursday, outdoor shooting shall cease 30 minutes after sunset or 9pm (whichever comes first); and
– council will review the changes in September.
