From the CBC’s web site of 17 April, 2024, we find the following article about a Mr. Whyte who tried to open a gun range near Perth, Ontario:
“A proposed private gun range in eastern Ontario has been blocked again, this time by the Ontario Land Tribunal.
The township and its planning manager argued Whyte’s proposal is incompatible with current land-use provisions. At the same time, concerns have been raised about the proposed gun range’s effect on the mental health of local residents, businesses and even water quality”.
Mr. Whyte apparently bought land formerly used by the OPP as a gun range. The OPP only used the facility for a short time and from the pictures in the article, the property has been vacant for quite some time.
Sounds like Mr. Whyte failed to do enough research on his proposed gun range site and I am surprised that an organization like the Ontario Land Tribunal would even consider such a proposal with the Liberal cloaked haze surrounding legal gun use right now.
If the Tribunal is so careful about the gun range’s effect on the mental health of local residents, businesses and the like why, in God’s name, have they not done something about gun ranges on King Street West or the Jane/Finch area of Toronto?
Yesterday’s news that three firearms had been seized by police which could, with some care and probably smuggled parts, be altered to fire the also seized illegal high-capacity magazines in a fully automatic fashion, which police feel could endanger public safety. No kidding! That will effect the mental health of any resident of any area.
Now it is true that you can find a company who makes a pistol conversion to fully automatic like the one made by Heritage Gun Works in Lakewood Colorado. Fires seventeen rounds in a heart beat. Problem is, for legal gun owners, you can’t buy one here in Canada. Nor can you buy the Glock Police and Military pistol that is fully automatic. Besides, ten rounds wouldn’t go far up here in the Great White North.
Now when this article was discussed on the CBC news, I was quite pleased and more than surprised when the presenter actually admitted that these guns had to have been smuggled into Canada from the United States. Must have really galled this ultra-liberal outlet to make such an admission having supported the theory that all guns used in violent attacks in Canada are locally sourced.
Maybe the message is starting to get through to Canadians. Legal gun owners are not the real problem, politicians are. All we can hope for now is perhaps a change in direction from a fresh set of political ideas in this country.
In the meantime, Mr. Whyte is left looking at his current dilemma. What location would be acceptable for his new gun range plans? As his current location doesn’t seem to have much promise, perhaps he should look farther afield.
Finally, one must hope that more municipalities don’t attempt to put forth more existing gun ranges in their respective municipalities before the Ontario Land Tribunal based on Mr. Whyte’s experience. That would truly signal the start of a big fight.
We should again thank the founders of the PRPC for picking a site in the middle of a swamp, outside city limits. Perhaps instead of ongoing legal fees, we will only need to buy bug spray!