The Musquash Task Force held its final meeting on April 13 and will begin preparing a final report with its recommendations to the Town Council at an upcoming meeting.
Recommendations of the Task Force include a total ban on target shooting on town-owned conservation properties, as well as placing restrictions on target shooting in the Musquash, such as limiting target shooting to turkey and deer hunting seasons.
The two additional recommendations the Task Force passed at their last meeting include the following:
• The Town consider, with ammunition limitations, a firing range at the Recycling Center, with hours consistent to the hours of the Recycling Center, with stewardship required, and with a check-in process at the gate.
The recommendation passed with a vote of 6-1. Sgt. Jason Breen voted against the recommendation.
• Also, to allow target shooting in the Musquash and other town-owned conservation properties only during turkey and deer hunting seasons, as established by New Hampshire Fish and Game; and only by those who possess a valid New Hampshire Fish and Game hunting license and have followed a check-in procedure (to be determined) with the Police Department; and with caliber restrictions equivalent only to those allowed for hunting deer and turkey (no center fire cartridges, with additional allowance for rim fire 22.22 and .22 Long Rifle); and, increasing the minimum safe shooting distance from 300 feet to 600 feet.
That recommendation passed with a 4-3 vote. Mike Considine, Bonnie McSpiritt and Breen voted against the recommendation. Al Sypek abstained, as he was not participating as a member during the meeting, and Bob Saur was not present.
The Task Force also recommended at a previous meeting with a 6-3 vote to ban target shooting, skeet shooting and trap shooting in the Musquash and other town-owned conservation areas, unless at a facility approved by the Town Council.
Member Dan Watson presented a series of six recommendations, all of which were intended to provide stricter regulation of target shooting in the Musquash and more accountability and enforcement for those who are not shooting responsibly.
The motion that passed was a combination of several of those motions.
Considine said he voted against all recommendations, except a total ban on target shooting, because he thinks that despite the increased regulation and restrictions, target shooting in the Musquash still presents a safety concern.
“Unless we identify a location for all shooters to be shooting at the same location with appropriate berms, it just doesn’t address the safety issue. I have the same general objection to all of these,” he said.
Watson pointed out hunters are permitted to shoot anywhere in the Musquash and asked why responsible target shooters couldn’t be given the same right.
Considine said hunters aren’t shooting hundreds of rounds at a time.
“But I thought this is a safety issue,” Watson argued, noting a deer is a target.
“I could make one shot unsafe and 100 shots safe,” he said.
“That’s safe, but we look at the biggest open space in southern New Hampshire, and we can shoot at a deer safely, but we can’t find a place to target shoot?” he asked. “You seem unwilling to differentiate between people doing irresponsible, illegal shooting and people shooting responsibly.”
“I’m a little confused, because one of the charges from the Council was to bring recommendations, and so far, other than three members who have tried to be open minded and bring possible recommendations, possible solutions, the majority of this task force has limited itself to strictly one thing, and that’s a ban,” Dana Coons said. “That’s not our charge, to just recommend a ban. Our charge was to bring recommendations, and I feel the majority of this task force has not been open minded at all.”
McSpiritt said the first motion the Task Force passed was a ban, but it also said that if someone came forward with a recommendation for a target shooting area, they recommend the Council be open to that as well.
“We’re not closing the door on those people,” she said. “One of my major things is enforcement of it and how we control it, and making sure it’s safe. But, also, from the public hearing we held, most of the people in there were for a ban,” she said. “I understand there were people there saying we should be having some target shooting available to people. I don’t see that recommendation as a total ban. People can come forward with a location for target shooting, but I don’t think the town should be responsible for developing this. I wouldn’t be in favor of having taxes go towards it because I don’t think we should be having to pay for this.”
Considine said when the Town started looking at the issue of target shooting about three years ago, they looked at finding a safe place for people to shoot.
“The Town Council came back and the answer was, there is no safe place within the Musquash,” he said. “We continued and had a blue trailer out there, and other targets at the power lines. We took those down and put education materials at all trail heads. That hasn’t worked.”
Considine said he’s in favor of continuing the search for a location with the right geometry and access for target shooting.
But Coons argued that everyone on the Task Force knows without a doubt, there is no way the Council will authorize a public shooting range in the Musquash or anywhere else.
“So, the resolution we passed is a ban, and it will be a ban. That’s the bottom line,” he said. “And the majority of people at the public hearing were abutters who are against it. And with all due respect, I hear it’s constant shooting out there. I purposely went out at different times of day at different locations, and I didn’t hear any shooting during the week. I did hear shooting down off Faucher Road on Saturday. The shooting is generally on the weekends, and it’s not all the time. I’m not saying it’s not an issue. We do have an issue with irresponsible people, but that’s not the majority.”
Watson and Coons argued that irresponsible shooting will be addressed by restricting shooting to hunting season, when people expect guns to be in the Musquash; further restricting target shooting to those with a Fish and Game hunting license (which requires completion of safety training); and requiring target shooters to check in at the police station, providing identification and information about where they will be shooting.
“Irresponsible shooters aren’t going to go to the police station,” Coons said.
Town Attorney Mike Ramsdell said he thinks it’s within the Town’s rights to require target shooters to check in before target shooting on town-owned conservation areas, and that officers have the right to ask to see a target shooter’s hunting license.
Additionally, Police Operations Commander Gerard Dussault said he doesn’t anticipate a check-in procedure would overburden staff at the Police Department.
Coons said he anticipates there would be about five target shooters on a given day checking in, and that activity would most likely be limited to the weekends.
Police Chief William Hart, who served as chairman of the Task Force, said he would produce a final report of their recommendations and supporting materials to present to the Council.
Members will additionally have the opportunity to share their own conclusions, if they wish to do so.