Board shoots down gun ranges in Lynbrook

New law passed by board of trustees

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The Lynbrook village board of trustees voted Monday night to approve a law banning gun ranges from opening up anywhere in the village.

“People are allowed under the constitution to have guns and use guns, and they should practice and know how to use them,” Mayor Bill Hendrick said, “but I think better places are available to have these ranges. We think that next to a resident’s housing is not the right place to have a gun range.”

The issue has been a point of contention with many residents for months, and a number of them showed up at Village Hall to voice their opinions. The situation reached its tipping point last March when Pamela Newman, CEO of ISS Action, a Queens-based security service company, proposed opening a gun range and spa in Lynbrook. The business would have been called the Sport Spa, and anticipated including a gun and archery range, a retail sporting goods and gun store, a live-action shooting simulator, training classrooms and a hair and nail salon. It would have replaced Cutler’s Lighting at 817 Sunrise Highway.

Many residents expressed their outrage at the idea of putting a gun range in a residential area. The Lynbrook Community Alliance — a local watchdog group created a few months ago — drew up a petition, which garnered 783 signatures, to combat the proposal. Newman withdrew her application in May, but residents were still concerned about the village potentially bringing a gun range into town in the future. Those worries were quelled on Monday when the village voted to ban them outright.

Lynbrook resident Dom Lavin told the trustees that he was concerned that the legislation might not hold up in court. Hendrick told Lavin he didn’t believe anyone would test the village on the law and, if they did, he’s confident the board has done what’s best for the residents. “We’re passing this law,” Hendrick said. “That’s all there is to it.”

He reassured the public that no one would want to put a gun range in Lynbrook after Newman struggled for months to get approval of her proposal. After it was withdrawn, the village searched for property in Lynbrook that could accommodate a gun range in the future without impacting a residential area. After no such spot could be found, the board decided to pass the law banning ranges.

While it is a victory for those who oppose gun ranges, the issue isn’t something that residents expect to disappear. “I think this issue has brought more people into the village [meetings] to open up concerns,” resident Toni Holder said. “Many people have been very concerned and they should keep their eyes open. This is never a closed issue. The concern doesn’t completely go away.”

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