WILLINGTON -- More than 100 neighbors crammed into a room below the Willington Public Library Thursday evening -- many of them to sound off against a proposed gun range for the Connecticut State Police.
"Your proposal seeks to destroy the peace and tranquility aspect of what we've come to enjoy about Willington," said Winnie Hart, a neighbor.
State Police are considering moving their current Simsbury range to one of three potential sites in Willington or East Windsor. Those sites were from a list of 20 potential candidates.
State Police have been using the Simsbury location since the early 1960s and say a more modern facility is needed to meet more modern threats such, as active shooters.
The Simsbury location is also in a flood zone and is frequently flooded out, which costs the state hundreds of thousands of dollars in damages. "The proximity of the Farmington River and and its continual encroachment on the range has created conditions that make its continued use impractical," said Sgt. Todd Harmon.
The plan calls for a state-of-the-art, 55,000-square-foot facility with several gun ranges, parking spots, classrooms and storage. The range would be used primarily by State Police, but would also be made available to other federal, state and local agencies when necessary.
Neighbors were more worried about noise from the range and the potential to disrupt the quiet ambiance and quality of life that many people want to keep. "The gunshots that will be going off, it'll just ruin the production of the egg production of our chickens, the milk production of our goats, and basically just ruin our whole business," said Thomas Fox, a business owner.
Everything is still in the early planning stages and the public comment period is open until early June. An environmental impact study must still be completed and a site isn't expected to be selected until at least mid to late fall 2015.