Most folks are aware the Camden County Gun Range is losing money year after year. Documents from the May 19, 2015, Board of Commissioners Work Session plainly state the "Cilivian Range will generate revenue to cover operational expenses." It was supposed to be self-supporting, but almost nine years later it is not. And of course, the commissioners have finally understood that the Gun Range is noisy. What they don’t seem to understand yet is that it is ILLEGALLY noisy. They should have Shawn Boatright obtain a legal interpretation of the County Unified Development Code Sections 802(2) and 810 since they are having difficulty understanding it themselves. The County is not exempted.
But we’ve discovered yet another problem. Call it Problem Number 3. The Commissioners can easily solve this problem, but how is this problem possible in the first place?
Answer: Either a bunch of people including the paid consultants and professionals and Camden County administrative staff forgot to check the zoning for the gun range property, or the County zoning map is wrong. The Planning and Development Department says the map is routinely updated within a few days of a zoning change. It is one or the other so which is it?
The FACTS: The Camden County Gun Range is built almost entirely in I-G Zoning which does not allow a “Shooting Range, Outdoor” even if a Special Use Permit is granted. This image shows the Gun Range with an overlay of the Camden County Zoning Map:
The Camden County Unified Development Code allows "Archery or Shooting Ranges, Outdoor” in Zoning classifications A-F (Agricultural Forestry) and C-G (General Commercial). Those zones require a Special Use Permit for an Outdoor Gun Range. No other zoning category allows an Outdoor Gun Range by Right or by Special Use.
Here’s a snapshot of the Summary Table of Allowed Uses from the Camden County Unified Development Code.
The SOLUTION: Since the County Commission adjudicates zoning and zoning appeals, they can simply go through the motions for the required rezoning and the Special Use Permit, and then approve it themselves. That's a whole lot easier than fixing their noise problem. And that would leave just Problems 1 & 2 (see above).
Doesn't this negligence provide ever more evidence that the County Administration cannot properly manage its own business? Either the County Zoning Map is wrong, or the County Commission simply didn’t follow its own development regulations. So which one is it?
Keep in mind that this government has had a handful of years to build a legally compliant Outdoor Recreational Gun Range. They also falsely thought they could build and operate a Spaceport and they're still spending taxpayer money to defend its worthless Spaceport Operator License. And because other places oversee the development and operation of a recreational airport, they think they can do it, too. And our elected officials have forced continuing zoning threats to Cumberland Island National Seashore. It boggles the mind how we keep electing and hiring so many experts in so many fields.
Lordy! Lordy! Wouldn’t a little humility go a long way in helping our elected leadership?
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