Midway shooting ranges face closure

El Paso County officials are considering several options to address concerns about a target shooting area on county land near the Midway community.

That pleases neighbors who said they’ve been concerned about the area for years.

“People come out, dump stuff, shoot at it and don’t bother to clean stuff up,” said Brandy Starkey-Dodge, a neighbor. “They have no compassion for the people who live in the area.”

One possibility is closing the area temporarily until a plan for cleanup and management is determined.

Another idea is closing the area permanently and opening another public shooting range to replace it.

Clif Northam, patrol commander with the county Sheriff’s Office, surveyed the area Tuesday.

“I think if we put some signs against dumping or littering,and maybe a warning as well about the possibility of charges for arson, it might deter some of the folks who would come back here,” he said.

Northam said the county is investigating whether shooting at several makeshift ranges in the area, violates any laws.

County Commissioner Dennis Hisey seems to favor closing the area permanently.

“We’ll do our best to keep people out of there completely, but when it’s several hundred acres like that, with several access points, there is no good way to keep the people out completely,” he said.

Hisey said the county likely will rely on volunteers to help clean the area.

“I’d like to have a plan together within a month,” he said.

The situation at the Midway ranges is reminiscent of the former Rampart Range shooting area, which closed in 2009 after complaints of safety, dumping, littering and an accidental shooting death.

The county, working with Fort Carson, opened the Cheyenne Mountain Shooting Complex last year as a safer option. However, the complex charges a $10 fee.

Hisey said the county is talking with three other counties about jointly opening another shooting range that would be less formal and possibly cheaper than the complex.

The Midway situation became publicized after Monday’s grass fire near the shooting area. Firefighters said they were forced to take cover when some shooters kept firing and bullets came dangerously close.

It was the second fire there in two weeks. Both were linked to shooting. A fire last month near the complex also may have been sparked by shooting.

Northam said the Sheriff’s Office found that no one intended to shoot too close to firefighters, and the bullets likely didn’t get as close as firefighters believed.

Deputies issued warnings and asked shooters to leave after firefighters expressed concern, but neighbors like Starkey-Dodge want to see stronger action.

“Just start issuing tickets,” she said. “There’s no reason for people to come here and use it as a range.”

Another neighbor, Becky Griffin, said most of the shooters at the Midway range come from outside the area.

“People go there because it’s free and out of the way,” she said.