Planning commission backs gunsmith shop with outdoor range after adding safety conditions

Goochland County planning commissioners on the May meeting recommended approval of a conditional use permit for a gunsmith shop and private outdoor firing range at 5764 Community House Road, subject to amended safety conditions.

Tom Coleman, the county’s principal planner, told the commission the application by Ian Hemstock would allow home‑based gunsmithing (repair, sale and transfer of firearms) and limited, downhill test‑firing towards an existing backstop on a 5‑acre parcel. Staff recommended conditions to limit hours, require specified backstop materials and prohibit opening the range to the general public.

Applicant Ian Hemstock identified himself and said the range is an existing facility he has used for personal testing. Hemstock said he intends the range to be used primarily by himself and accompanying guests and described standard gunsmithing test procedures: "It's a functional test and a safety test. It'll be no more than a magazine of rounds — a couple times a week," he said, adding that he routinely uses regional clubs for heavier testing.

Several nearby residents told the commission they had not been adequately notified about the proposal and raised safety and noise concerns. "I didn't even get an ad in the community meeting — I found out from the newspaper yesterday," said Kathy Crockett, a neighbor who opposed the range and urged greater transparency. Other neighbors said they hear occasional test firing and asked for a taller backstop.

In response, Hemstock offered to increase the berm height and add materials to help contain rounds on the property and said he would consider narrower hours for test‑firing. "If for whatever reason that is not felt adequate, I'm more than happy to improve the berm," he said.

Commissioners and staff discussed which restrictions could be enforced as conditions of the CUP. The commission amended condition 6 to require that the backstop be constructed to a minimum height of 8 feet and amended condition 4 to specify that only the property owner shall test‑fire weapons. The motion to recommend approval as amended passed on a 5–0 vote.

The commission's recommendation will go to the Board of Supervisors for a public hearing on July 2. The CUP as approved by the commission is time‑limited (recommended five‑year renewal) and requires adherence to county, state and federal laws; any different operational limitations (for example, broader prohibitions on who may shoot or on rounds per time period) would need to be included explicitly in the CUP to be enforceable.

The record includes neighbors' requests for additional written limitations and more explicit, written commitments about who may use the range; commissioners noted verbal assurances are not equivalent to enforceable conditions and that added restrictions must be written into the permit.