A proposal to turn a 54-acre property off Crawford Road into an outdoor firearms training range is drawing opposition from residents in a rural Lake County community, where a petition against the project has gathered nearly 500 signatures.
The property is currently zoned for agricultural use. According to a proposed conditional use permit, the owner is seeking approval to develop the land into an outdoor firing range.
Neighbors say they are concerned about noise, traffic and the property’s location near the Green Swamp, a protected conservation area tied to Florida’s aquifer system.
“It’s just a rural community,” said Jenny Goss, who started the petition. “Our kids are riding bikes down the road. We don’t need hundreds of cars coming through here on top of all of the conservation stuff.”
Residents who live near the proposed site say the area is quiet and largely residential, with narrow roads that they say are not built for a major increase in traffic.
Goss said the potential impact extends beyond nearby homes.
“It would impact everybody really in Florida because of the aquifer,” she said. “This is a very protected area because of that. Also, as far as this community, it would affect us because the roadways, our roads are tiny. You can see they’re not in great shape.”
Del Ramsey, who lives within walking distance of the property, said her family is worried about what daily activity at the range could mean for their quality of life.
“I’ve been out here for 70 years and never had anything like this,” Ramsey said. “We have hunters that use their guns out here. Maybe an hour tops and everything. This is going to be every day, seven days a week. And when you hear the noise that I have to listen to, it’s not right.”
Goss said she has reached out to Lake County officials to share residents’ concerns.
The station also reached out to Wicked Arsenal, the company submitting the proposal, for comment. A response had not been received.
The Lake County Planning and Zoning Board is expected to discuss the proposal at its upcoming meeting Wednesday.