Greetings, all. I'm a new forum member, and this is my first post. I'll be relocating to Smithfield, Virginia for work in a month or so. I'm currently under contract for my new home. Am I able to set up a private shooting range/area on my property? Allow me to provide some pertinent details about the property that might help generate more accurate answers/suggestions. The county is Isle of Wight. The lot is 4.5 acres. The zoning is classified as RAC(Rural Agricultural Conservation). The property is secluded, surrounded by dense forest. Of the adjoining properties(neighbors), the closest residence is 360 feet and the farthest is 1,200 feet. The proposed direction of fire has 1,000 feet of dense forest as a backstop(can build a berm if necessary) with 500 feet of open field beyond that. I'm not aware of any noise ordinances. That's all I can think of that would help determine if a private range would be legit or not. Any insights and guidance that members can provide would be greatly appreciated. Thank you all in advance.
Requirements / ability to shoot on private property in Smithfield, Virginia.
- Thread starter jman1111
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Rubone
Member
Any questions should be able to be answered by the County Planning department as to ordinances, restrictions, etc. Internet opinions and suggestions mean nothing. Be prepared to deal with complaints filed by neighbors as well. You can also find out if anything is planned for the area, housing development, golf course, etc.
Conelrad
Member
All I can add is get it permitted in writing if possible now. In the future it won't be any easier...
Conelrad
Conelrad
Hmmmm....
Sec. 12-11.1 - Discharging firearms.
SHARE LINK TO SECTIONPRINT SECTIONDOWNLOAD (DOCX) OF SECTIONSEMAIL SECTIONCOMPARE VERSIONS
(a) No person shall discharge any firearm within the county within one thousand feet of a (i) platted subdivision; (ii) business establishment; (iii) public building; (iv) public gathering; or (v) public meeting place, unless engaged in lawful hunting. For purposes of this subsection (a), a "platted subdivision" shall mean a single-family residential subdivision of more than five lots platted at the same time.
https://library.municode.com/va/isl...hoot, hunt,and the Hardy Magisterial District.
Sec. 12-11.1 - Discharging firearms.
SHARE LINK TO SECTIONPRINT SECTIONDOWNLOAD (DOCX) OF SECTIONSEMAIL SECTIONCOMPARE VERSIONS
(a) No person shall discharge any firearm within the county within one thousand feet of a (i) platted subdivision; (ii) business establishment; (iii) public building; (iv) public gathering; or (v) public meeting place, unless engaged in lawful hunting. For purposes of this subsection (a), a "platted subdivision" shall mean a single-family residential subdivision of more than five lots platted at the same time.
https://library.municode.com/va/isl...hoot, hunt,and the Hardy Magisterial District.
CapnMac
Member
Looks to have nailed the pertinent ordinance.
@jman1111 will want to use their property information to see if they are in a platted subdivision (or check online here: https://iowgis.maps.arcgis.com/apps/webappviewer/index.html?id=4889333b70534c018c2c723b4d953f51 which ought identify the property by specific address).
The other thing to do will be to just hang out for a week or so. You'll be able to tell if the neighbors shoot reasonably quickly. Especially if this is as rural as OP suggests.
A tall (tall as you can make it) earth berm is nearly always the ideal answer.
twarr1
Member
This comment probably won’t win any popularity contests…
My property is bounded on 3 sides by other large (640+ acre) ranches. But on one side a developer built 2-5 acre “ranchettes”. Some of the new owners feel like they now have shooting ranges/hunting properties. My truck has been shot, and my home peppered countless times with bird shot in dove season.
I’ve offered to let these guys hunt my section of land for deer, turkey and dove. No one took me up on the offer.
IMHO 5 or even 10 acres of raw land, wooded or not, simply isn’t enough unless you’re willing to build a proper backstop or the land has natural fire-friendly features like a deep creek bank or butte.
By ‘proper backstop’ I mean an NRA or similar design, not a pile of dirt.
- From someone who’s been on the wrong end of a barrel too many times.
My property is bounded on 3 sides by other large (640+ acre) ranches. But on one side a developer built 2-5 acre “ranchettes”. Some of the new owners feel like they now have shooting ranges/hunting properties. My truck has been shot, and my home peppered countless times with bird shot in dove season.
I’ve offered to let these guys hunt my section of land for deer, turkey and dove. No one took me up on the offer.
IMHO 5 or even 10 acres of raw land, wooded or not, simply isn’t enough unless you’re willing to build a proper backstop or the land has natural fire-friendly features like a deep creek bank or butte.
By ‘proper backstop’ I mean an NRA or similar design, not a pile of dirt.
- From someone who’s been on the wrong end of a barrel too many times.
twarr1
Member
Another suggestion is; when you’re all set up, get some tracers in a caliber you own and fire them. You’ll be surprised how many don’t end up in the backstop.
alsaqr
Member
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