EPHRATA - The annexation of a 162-acre piece of land drew concerns from an Ephrata Sportsmen's Association member.

The city council approved annexing the land near the Port of Ephrata and changing it to a light industrial zone. The land is south of the Boyd Mordhorst Memorial Shooting Range and the Ephrata Municipal Airport.

The city requested to add the land to urban growth area (UGA) about a year ago, Community Development Director Ron Sell said. The urban growth area is the land the city can annex from the county.

The developer requested dealing with the infrastructure issues when the land is developed, Sell said. Utilities need to be brought out to the land, and access needs to be added when it's developed.

"One person stopped by the office and was concerned," he said. "They were from the gun range, and they were concerned about the incompatibility there."

Penn Weaver, an Ephrata Sportsmen's Association member, told the council he already fought against including the land within the city's urban growth area. When the issue went in front of the Grant County Planning Commission, the association organized a letter writing campaign to stop its inclusion.

"When the staff report was given to the planning commission, they asked the staff, 'Well, how many letters were sent regarding this proposal?' and the answer was, 'Lots of them,'" Weaver said. "When the question was given to the staff, 'How many were against the proposal?' The answer was, 'All of them.'"

Weaver fought similar battles in other states, he said. He pointed to a Jacksonville, Ala., shooting range, which was shut down due to rezoning.

"I've seen a rifle range in Athens, Ga., closed down, when I was there in graduate school for the very same reason," he said. "We had numerous attempts when I lived in Memphis to shut down our Memphis sports shooting association. That one we won by going to state Legislature and getting a state constitutional amendment."

Growth in the area would mean closing down the shooting range, he said. He pointed out all of the police agencies in the county use the shooting range.

"The only way to prevent it is to prevent the development in the first place," he said.

Weaver pointed out adding the land could possibly cost the city more money in providing emergency services and utilities to the area.

Larry Angell with Columbia NW Engineering, said his firm and the property owner started the process in 2009. They started with a larger area and tried to include it in the city's UGA.

"The idea being that this property would be appropriate for future development ... and it's understood that access, water and sanitary sewer issues would have to be addressed by the property owner and any future developers to enable this area to be developed."

Angell said members of sportsmen's association and gun club users extensively discussed their concerns at the planning commission meetings about the property.

"The gist of all of that testimony, as the previous speaker indicated, was all negative and very much opposed to the incorporation of the area into the urban growth area," he said.

As a result of the discussion, the owner agreed to remove about 80 acres from the request. The 80 acres is meant to provide a buffer to the gun club, Angell said.

"At that meeting, the sportsmen's association ... agreed to that compromise, and so that left us with the 160 acres that is being proposed this evening," he said.

Ralph Kincaid, the realtor representing the land owner said the location is ideal for light industrial zoning, since it's located along state Route 282.

"It's an ideal location, we feel, for things like a distribution center, light manufacturing and, yes, even a data center, and that's already been discussed as a possibility," he said.

The land's owner understands they or the developer will need to help pay to extend utilities to the land before it's developed, Kincaid said. They've spoken with the Port of Ephrata to contribute to the extension.

Kincaid was surprised to hear Weaver's comments, saying he thought they had a beneficial agreement with the club.

"It's kind of ironic that the 80-acre rural remote zone allows some residential use, which would be my biggest fear for the gun range, not an industrial-type use," he said. "I think this is an opportunity for Ephrata. I don't think you've got your share of the industrial development that has happened in this county."

When Mayor Chris Jacobson asked if changing the zoning to light industrial would affect the gun range, Sell answered that typically, with gun ranges, the city would want to avoid residential zoning.

"A commercial zone, in my opinion, would also be potentially a more intensive use than most typical industrial uses," he said. "Our general commercial (zone) would allow shopping malls. The light industrial, in my opinion, is more of a buffer."

City Administrator Wes Crago said the range wouldn't be protected by the zoning. The range is protected because the city owns and operates it.

"We have a vested interest in seeing the sportsmen's association, the gun club, be successful," he said. "We are users of the facility both professionally and privately."

The club was built using state funds, Crago said. They would need to either be paid back or the city would need to rebuild a similar facility somewhere else.

Jacobson asked if the city could turn down the annexation.

Sell said the point where it should have been stopped is when it was brought into the UGA.

"Being that this is a light industrial designation process, it's actually to our advantage. The port would see this to their advantage," Crago said. "The concerns regarding the gun range, I think need to be addressed, but I think they can be addressed successfully."

Crago said the council might need to look at noise ordinances to protect the gun range. The range is oriented away from the annexed land.

"So safety is not an issue," he said. "It would be changes to existing ordinances to essentially protect the gun range from the type of complaints that Mr. Weaver is concerned about."