Loveland gun range on ballot Feb. 8!

The Cincinnati Enquirer reported Saturday that residents will decide Tuesday about the fate of a proposed indoor shooting range on Loveland-Madeira Road.

The owners of Shooters Supply, a 16-year Loveland business, are proposing a new retail store and indoor shooting range on Loveland-Madeira.

The newspaper reports that Loveland council last year passed an amended gun law that allows the range, but opponents, who say the proposed range is too close to residences, successfully forced the issue to the Feb. 8 ballot.

Proponents have informed the Enquirer the proposed range will be built well beyond current safety standards, and will benefit the community because local police officers will practice there.

"There's definitely a market for this," Dan Lovett, a partner in Shooters Supply, was quoted as saying. "We want to stay here because we've been here for 16 years. It's going to be good for us and it's going to good for the community.''

City officials say the community will benefit because the range will provide a place for local officers to practice.

"A training facility in Loveland is a benefit for our police department," Loveland Mayor Brad Greenberg told the newspaper. "It's a legitimate business. It will attract customers who will spend money in Loveland.''

Lovitt told the Enquirer he's encouraged by the large number of people supporting the business.

"The interest crosses party lines," Lovitt said. "The people who are coming in here are more pro-business and pro-local economy than they are pro-gun. It's a pro-business decision that the whole city now has an opportunity to make."

The newspaper quotes Lovitt as saying the business likely will move from Loveland if voters overturn the amended law.

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