CITY SOLVES FIRING RANGE ISSUE

The Akron Police Department firing range issue has been solved with an agreement between the City of Akron and the University of Akron. Mayor Don Plusquellic announced today, at a morning news conference, that the indoor firing range inside Schrank Hall on the UA campus would accommodate the APD’s indoor firing requirements. At the same time, the mayor announced, the current outdoor range used by Akron police officers will be modified for added safety and noise reduction.

The range on Cuyahoga Street is in proximity to the towpath hike and bike trail. That has led to concerns that noise from the pistol firing might frighten towpath users. The mayor announced that the City would construct an earthen mound that will nearly surround the facility. "We believe this will further fortify an already very safe firing range and will set citizen’s minds at ease about the noise emanating from it," the mayor said today. The mounds will absorb much of the noise and the mound in which police now fire their weapons will be enhanced and increased in height.

This is a temporary fix to the problem of where to put a firing range. By late 2002, the Hardy Road Landfill will be at capacity and stop accepting garbage. The City will begin capping the facility, in accordance with EPA regulations. That process, the mayor said, could take several years. When that process is completed, the City of Akron plans to construct a new firing range atop the old landfill.

Mound-building work is expected to begin within 60 days at the Cuyahoga Street firing range.

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