HomeMy WebLinkAbout20102503.tiff Jason C. and Anne B. Kern
30887 County Road 88
Ault, CO 80610
(970) 656-3652
October 3, 2010
United States Forest Service
Pawnee National Grassland
660 O Street
Greeley, CO 80631
ATTN: Lori Bell, District Ranger
Dear Lori,
This letter is to comment on the proposed developed shooting area location at County
Road 57 and Colorado Highway 14 in Section 26 or County Road 57 and County Road
88 in Section 34.
We have serious concerns with the proposed locations. They are as follows:
1) Both the proposed site in Section 26 and the alternative in Section 34 are in areas
where there are no current problems with recreational shooting. If it is the intent
of the USFS to place a shooting range at one of these locations then we would like
to request that shooting be shut down on other locations south of Highway 14.
Particularly shooting in the in the Jones Allotment in Section 30. Currently there
is unregulated shooting in the area which is only a half section and located within
less than a mile of 3 separate residences.
2) There are residences, livestock and range improvements in the area that could be
damaged by stray bullets and irresponsible shooters. The neighbors of the
Pawnee already deal with some of these problems. When property whether
private or federal is damaged the private landowners and Crow Valley Livestock
Coop. are left to bare the brunt of the cost to fix the damage.
3) Both the proposed site in Section 26and the alternative site in Section 34 are
surrounded on at least three sides by private property and neither site is more than
a section in size. The alternative is only a half section and is surrounded by
unfenced private property for purposes of cattle grazing. The site will not be
monitored full time and there is a concern about trespassing and destruction of
l':.ommv.vxy CAi u"S
10 - 1$ - k O 2010-2503
adjacent private property, especially if that property is unfenced and contiguous to
USFS Land. If these sites are chosen we would request that the USFS take
measures to protect neighboring properties by fencing them off and providing
signage as to what is federal land and what is private land.
4) Monitoring and maintenance of the site is also a concern. As neighbors of the
Pawnee we already deal with trash that is left by recreational shooters that ends up
on our property. The areas on the Pawnee that are already impacted by
recreational shooting are eyesores to the public. With no designated party to
maintain the site it is our concern that it will become a dumpsite for various
appliances, household items and trash that is left by shooters. Another concern is
who will keep weeds and grass down on the range? The recent hot and dry
weather has increased the concerns of prairie fire and with residences so close to
the area the concern of prairie fire started by a stray bullet is increased. This
actually happened earlier this spring when shooters, who were trespassing, on the
property neighboring the proposed site to the east were shooting and started a fire
that burned a few hundred acres of private and federal land. The developed
shooting range should have a permanent plan in place to maintain and monitor the
site especially during peak shooting seasons.
These are some of the concerns we have with the current proposed sites for the developed
shooting area. We feel it would be more appropriate in an area that is larger in
contiguous federal land and closer to areas where shooting is already a problem. We
appreciate your time and consideration of our comments. We look forward to further
discussion of this issue.
Sincerely I
0.,. . L,,,,, ,,' � K
Jason C. Kern &
Anne B. Kern
CC: Weld County Commissioners
Hello