Benton Community Services Committee Considers Amending Gun Ordinance

The Benton Community Services Committee is meeting tonight and will consider an amendment to the city’s firearms ordinance. If the amendment passes, it will go to the Benton City Council for final approval at its next meeting on Sept. 23. No specific changes have been proposed yet, but discussions are underway about how to amend the law if the Benton City Council approves the conditional use permit for an indoor shooting range, according to Matt Thibault, a spokesman for the city of Benton.

At a meeting on Sept. 3, the Benton Planning Commission approved a conditional use application for an indoor shooting range in Benton. The application was made by Lewis Engineers. Since shooting ranges are listed as a conditional use under the city’s zoning ordinance, the application will go to the City Council for final approval at its next meeting.

“To determine if something is a ‘conditional use,’ we rely on a ‘use matrix,’” said John Parton, Benton’s community development director. “That’s in our zoning ordinance (14 of 2017 and amended) that outlines some general categories of what would be allowed, what would be a conditional use and what would not be allowed in each of the zones.”

The site plan was also approved pending landscaping requirements. The indoor shooting range would be located off Interstate 30 on Fleming Drive, behind Popeyes and Wood Grill.

Currently, the closest indoor shooting range is at Arkansas Armory, Inc. in North Little Rock.

In February 2009, the City of Benton passed an ordinance prohibiting anyone from discharging a firearm in the city. The ordinance provided exceptions for law enforcement officers acting in self-defense, and for firing blanks for ceremonial purposes. Currently, any person or entity violating the ordinance is guilty of a misdemeanor upon conviction and is subject to a fine or penalty of more than $25 but less than $500 plus court costs.