City tells shooting-range users to keep it clean

The city has seen an increase in the number of appliances left at the outdoor shooting range in Wrangell. Those who manage the range say if the problem continues, public access may be restricted.

People are taking TVs and microwaves to the shooting range and using them as targets, then leaving the busted appliances there, said Kim Covalt of the Wrangell parks and recreation department.

“If we can’t get a grasp on this, then we’ll have to be restricting access to it,” he said.

The City and Borough of Wrangell owns the shooting range, said City Manager Timothy Rooney, and the parks and recreation department manages it.

Lieutenant Merlin Ehlers of the Wrangell Police Department said the appliances, or empty propane tanks, being shot at and left at the range have been cleaned up many times but the problem persists.

The appliances and shattered glass the shot-at equipment creates have always been picked up in an effort to maintain a clean shooting range, Ehlers said. The intention being, “if you have a dirty range, people will keep doing it,” he said,

“But that doesn’t seem to be working,” he added.

Covalt said people have been able to enjoy the free shooting range for approximately 15 years. The issue of people using it as a dumping ground has gradually been getting worse over the last several years, he said.

“It just seems like it is getting worse year after year, and this winter, it seems like it is getting really bad,” said Covalt.

As of yet, no one has been caught leaving the garbage at the range, but Ehlers said the police department will “work on that” if the problem continues.

If caught, a person can be charged with a misdemeanor and fined up to $1,000, said Ehlers.

The shooting range remains open from dusk until dawn. It has never been locked, Covalt said. However, that could change.

“That’s the last thing this city wants to do is restrict people from stuff, but that’s probably going to happen if this issue continues,” he said.

He hopes it won’t come to that, as the shooting range is a great asset for the community.

“It’s just a nice asset to have, and it’s just a shame that it gets to this point,” Covalt said.