Proposal to close ranges draws fire

TheStar.com - GTA - Proposal to close ranges draws fire
Mayor's plan 'an insult to law-abiding citizens,' councillor charges
May 28, 2008
Sarah Barmak
Staff Reporter

With several gun ranges in operation just outside Toronto, the city's sport shooters were questioning yesterday whether Mayor David Miller's proposals to close recreational ranges and block out new manufacturers and wholesalers would really limit gun use.

Even if Miller's plan – aimed ultimately at stemming the lethal use of guns on the street – becomes a bylaw, Torontonians could still legally practise shooting by, for example, requesting a membership at the Lakeshore Arms Academy in Mississauga.

Acting Ontario chief firearms officer Tony Cooper says he doesn't think the law would ultimately affect Toronto gun enthusiasts' ability to buy weapons or use them on a range, noting that they have other options in the GTA.

"It would be an inconvenience for someone who didn't have a car. It would be a few miles further than they would normally go."

There are currently 44 licensed businesses in Toronto that wholesale, retail, manufacture or repair firearms, Cooper estimates.

The Toronto Revolver Club, founded in 1905, has its own gun range. The Forest Hill Revolver Club, which has 35 members, rents space at a gun range on Royal York Rd. that plays host to "five or six" other clubs who use it, according to the club's president, George Cormack.

And after 75 years of operation, the Canadian National Recreation Association Handgun Club still practises in a shooting gallery in the rafters of Union Station. Among its users is Avianna Chao, who will represent Canada as a pistol shooter at the Olympics this summer.

Chao's coach, Patrick Haynes, complained that the plan doesn't reflect "our shooting community."

"We're not directly related to the violence, we're not related to individuals going off on the street and hurting other people. Our sport is about safety, it's about respect for the law."

Councillor Case Ootes (Ward 29, Toronto-Danforth) joined in that criticism yesterday.

"To go after gun ranges ... to ban that and say that is the cause of gun violence in the street is absolutely ludicrous," said Ootes, who trained as a sharpshooter in cadets years ago but says he no longer shoots. "It's an insult to law-abiding citizens."