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What is this about?

The Shingle Springs Band of Miwok Indians, owners of Red Hawk Casino, is moving forward with building a proposed 29-lane outdoor commercial gun range and tactical live-fire shoot house. The proposed range will be within 1000 yards of two public elementary schools and a church, and within 100 yards of dozens of private residences directly in the line-of-fire.

This is the wrong location for an outdoor commercial gun range. The project will force the residents to leave their homes at a fraction of their original property value and will mean that nearby elementary schoolchildren and churchmembers will be playing, studying and worshiping to the sound of gunfire.

How is this gun range different?

The project is being built by the Shingle Springs Band of Miwok Indians, owners of Red Hawk Casino, on sovereign land where county and federal zoning rules and safety regulations do not apply. This land was only recently acquired by the tribe. The project, as proposed, would not be approved under normal county laws and regulations. If this project goes through, it will set a dangerous precedent for the whole state as tribes everywhere are looking for ways to diversify their business ventures. This situation will set a precedent for relations between local communities and tribes throughout California and the nation.


Is this about gun rights?

Our concerns revolve around quality of life and safety issues, and in no way relate to gun rights. Many of us are gun enthusiasts and we support the second amendment right to bear arms.

Is this about Native American rights?

We respect the right of the Shingle Springs Band of Miwok Indians to develop on trust land. We only ask that they be good neighbors and consider the safety and quality of life of the surrounding community.

Why should I care?

The project is being fast-tracked

Groundbreaking is targeted for March 2015 and without immediate action by our community, this project will open in Summer 2015.

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The usual regulations don't apply

The project is being built by the Shingle Springs Band of Miwok Indians on sovereign land where county and federal rules and regulations do not apply. This land was only recently acquired by the tribe. The project, as proposed, would not be approved under normal county laws and regulations.

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It sets a dangerous precedent

If the Tribe is allowed to build this project, one can easily see a scenario where gun ranges and other inappropriate projects with no local approval or oversight start springing up on off-reservation trust land throughout the state with no concern for the proximity, safety and quality of life of the surrounding established communities.

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The community has not been heard

Despite pleas from the community, project organizers have refused to modify their plans to move it to another location, build a safer indoor range, or pursue other alternatives.

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No proper studies have been done

No impartial sound, safety or environmental impact studies have been completed.

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We must make our voices heard

Only by making our voices heard can we preserve the safety and quality of life of our community.

Trust land bait-and-switch

In the 2002 Fee-to-Trust application filed by the Shingle Springs Band of Miwok Indians, the proposed projects for these fee-to-trust land parcels were to be a health clinic and six residential homes for Tribe members. Per the application:

“The Tribe chose the health clinic and housing sites…because the Tribe’s plans for the property are compatible with existing County land use values.”

Those parcels approved to be taken into trust in 2006 are now proposed by the Tribe to be a 29-lane outdoor gun range and a convenience store/gas station.

While this bait-and-switch is legal per the current trust land legislation, it is not aligned with the original intent of the legislation. If the Tribe had proposed a 29-lane outdoor gun range located less than 200 yards from existing neighbors in their original trust land application, the application would not and should not have been approved. The fact that the stated use of trust land can be altered by the Tribe without limit provides no protection to the U.S. citizens located just on the other side of the sovereign nation boundary. For the safety of the U.S. citizens located just outside the sovereign nation there has to be some reasonable limit to the projects that the Tribe can develop to ensure the safety of their neighbors and peace of their surrounding community. Currently, there is no such limit in existing trust land law.

The situation is even more troublesome given the fact that the Tribe has two pending applications on file with the Bureau of Indian Affairs to put several more parcels of land into trust. We have seen the Tribe’s willingness to abuse the land trust process and not follow through with the intended use of the land. Effective immediately, there should be no further approval of fee-to-trust land applications for the Shingle Springs Tribe given this pattern of abuse.

Tribe Parcel Map

parcel-map[1]

View the parcel map »

Trust Land Application

View trust land application »

Sound test

On March 18, 2015, a group of concerned community members hired a professional acoustic consulting firm to conduct a live-fire sound test to measure the potential sound impact of the 29-lane outdoor gun range. The sound in the footage from the school and residences in this video comes from only seven firearms being fired on land right next to the Tribe’s proposed gun range. The scientific data from the study is being analyzed and the results will be released soon but the video speaks for itself.

Real Stories of the Impact on the Community

Gary lives 200 yards away and directly in the line-of-fire of the proposed gun range. Get a glimpse of how the range will affect his family, his horses and the surrounding community.

Carolyn lives near the proposed gun range. Her special-needs daughter attends the nearby elementary school.

Darren lives 1000 yards from the proposed gun range. His wife makes her living training people how to ride horses on their property.

A short clip of the seven-gun sound test as heard from California Montessori Project Elementary School.

Get Involved

imgresDonate Online via GoFundMe

Our efforts cost money. To help with the costs of spreading the word to the concerned community (flyers, signs, domain names, sound study, etc.) please donate on our GoFundMe page: Donate Now!

Donate Now!


Let the Shingle Springs Band of Miwok Indians know that you are opposed to this project, as it is currently proposed.

Sign the online petition

While we are unsure at this point what authority our representatives have over this project, it is important that they hear how much opposition there is. Please contact your government representatives let them know that you oppose this project as it is currently proposed and ask them to take all available measures to stop it. Please keep all communications respectful and civil. We will soon have downloadable templates with talking points and verbiage for you to use. Please check back for these resources.

El Dorado County Board of Supervisors

Ron Mikulaco, Supervisor District I, (530) 621-5650, bosone@edcgov.us
Shiva Frentzen, Supervisor District II, (530) 621-5651, bostwo@edcgov.us
Brian Veerkamp, Supervisor District III, (530) 621-5652, bosthree@edcgov.us
Michael Ranalli, Supervisor District IV, (530) 621-6513, bosfour@edcgov.us
Sue Novasel, Supervisor District V, (530) 621-6577, bosfive@edcgov.us
Board of Supervisors’ Agenda Item Comments, Clerk of the Board: edc.cob@edcgov.us

Congressman Tom McClintock

(916) 786-5560, http://mcclintock.house.gov/contact/email-me

Senator Dianne Feinstein

(202) 224-3841, https://www.feinstein.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/e-mail-me

Senator Barbara Boxer

(202) 224-3553, https://www.boxer.senate.gov/contact/shareyourviews.html

Governor Jerry Brown

(916) 445-2841, https://govnews.ca.gov/gov39mail/mail.php

Write a letter to the editor voicing your opposition to this project as currently proposed. Please keep all letters respectful and civil. We will soon have downloadable templates with talking points and verbiage for you to use. Please check back for these resources.

Sac Bee: viewpoints@sacbee.com

Mtn Democrat: http://www.mtdemocrat.com/letters-to-the-editor/

Village Life: http://www.villagelife.com/letter-to-the-editor/

Lake Tahoe News: http://www.laketahoenews.net/contribute

Folsom Telegraph: http://www.folsomtelegraph.com/contact/forms/letter-editor

 

 

If you have time, energy and useful skills you would like to lend to this effort, please contact us at contact@gunrangeinfo.com. Keep in mind that this is a very contentious issue. Given the nature of the project, it also has the potential to get sidetracked into issues of gun rights and Native American rights. It is essential that we stick to the key message that our concerns are the safety, noise and the poor choice of location for this project. Those who volunteer must be able to remain level-headed and be careful to not let their passion for the issue lead them to be confrontational in their interactions and communications.

If you have property along Highway 50 or near the site of the project and would be willing to post one or more signs voicing your opposition, please contact us at contact@gunrangeinfo.com.

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The gun range will be in close proximity to:

elementary schoolchildren

residences & local businesses

church members

of drivers on Highway 50

Community members are united in opposition

“A shooting range at this location is not right for our community. As a Veteran of the United States Marine Corps, I support the 2nd amendment. For me this is not a gun rights issue. This is a community and proximity issue. I believe an outdoor weapons range directly adjacent to the freeway, and less than a mile from two elementary schools and a church is a bad idea.”

Marine Corps veteran and parent of a child at a nearby elementary school

“We want to work with the tribe to settle on a safer plan for this property: one that helps keep the quality of life we enjoy in this area and in this county. We are just asking that they be good neighbors. The plan, as it stands is way too close to highway 50, residences, a church and two elementary schools. Would you want your child playing to the sound of 29 lanes of gunfire?”

Concerned parent of a student at CMP Shingle Springs

It seems outrageous to me that when the Tribe applied for trust land status on this land, that the projects proposed were a tribal health clinic and six residential houses for tribal members. Now that the land is in trust, the proposed development projects are a 29-lane outdoor gun range and a gas station. This is an abuse of trust land status and this “bait-and-switch” should not be allowed!

Concerned parent of a CMP Shingle Springs student