{"id":1358,"date":"2019-06-17T17:36:57","date_gmt":"2019-06-17T17:36:57","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.crosshairscommunity.com\/?p=1358"},"modified":"2019-06-17T17:41:36","modified_gmt":"2019-06-17T17:41:36","slug":"association-plans-4-million-shooting-complex-near-elysburg","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.crosshairscommunity.com\/?p=1358","title":{"rendered":"Association plans $4 million shooting complex near Elysburg"},"content":{"rendered":"

Nearly 1.3 million White Flyer targets \u2014 made locally in Shamokin \u2014 are not the only things being released this week at the Pennsylvania State Trap Shoot in Elysburg.<\/span><\/p>\n

So, too, are details of a proposed $4 million year-round shooting<\/span>\u00a0complex in the works for the Valley Gun & Country Club grounds.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve been throwing registered targets 23 days a year at this facility<\/span>\u00a0with so much to offer, and wanted to broaden it to other types of clay target shooting \u2014 primarily sporting clays and skeet,\u201d said Mike Schuler, president of the Pennsylvania State Shotgunning Association (PSSA), on Tuesday.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cTo be able to go from a very short seasonal\u00a0<\/span>offering to doing something year-round to a wider group of shooters is a big deal and very exciting.\u201d<\/p>\n

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The PSSA shared the grounds with the Valley Gun & Country Club for quite some time, but there was some friction a few years ago that almost lead to the PSSA changing venues, but that is no longer an issue, Schuler admitted.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThere was some question about an old lease a few years ago that is now resolved and we have the title and full access to the facility,\u201d he said. \u201cIt was necessary to get to this point before we invested in all the renovations necessary to make this a year-round destination. Everyone is committed moving forward. We have civil engineers currently working on securing the necessary permits.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

As long as all continues to advanced as planned, Schuler<\/span>\u00a0expects ground to be broken on the project \u2014 to be named the Northeast Shooting Complex \u2014 by September, with the sporting clays phase the first priority.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cResearch shows that seven out of 10 new shooters are gravitating toward sporting clays versus ATA trapshooting,\u201d said Schuler. \u201cSporting clays offers a unique shooting experience where four or five or six guys can go around together like a round of golf, chatting, talking and not standing on a trap line where everyone is quiet and doing their own thing.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

If all goes as planned, he added, the first shots fired over the sporting clays course could come by early November.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThe PSSA expansion will\u00a0definitely open up opportunities\u00a0for local businesses\u00a0to have corporate events,\u00a0host charities and do<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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other events,\u201d said Robert Crow, salesman at White<\/span>Flyer targets out of Shamokin. \u201cWe have a longstanding relationship with the PSSA and are excited about the addition of sporting clays, as it expands the type of targets that will be shot on site.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Funding for the $4 million facility is coming in three main forms, including individual donations, corporate donations with naming opportunities \u2014 \u201cLike baseball stadiums such as PNC Park, groups like Krieghoff that are tied to the shooting industry can donate toward naming rights,\u201d Schuler said \u2014 and applications for public money via recreation capital from the state.<\/span><\/p>\n

Bloomsburg professor Heather Feldhaus, who helped oversee an economic impact study of the state shoot in 2015 that suggested the nine-day event brought $2.67 million to the Valley in 2014, is optimistic the year-round shooting complex<\/span>\u00a0will offer a strong boost<\/span>\u00a0to the region.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWhen we did our study, it was amazing to see the loyalty there was to that shoot. It is unusual where people come to an annual event like that for 10 or more years, but it truly is a family event and the shooters have a passion for it,\u201d she said.<\/span><\/p>\n

There were some indicators from her study that she feels will play well into the new venture\u2019s success.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThe group has a strong\u00a0team, they know theirmarket and are well-connected\u00a0across the state,\u201d she\u00a0said. \u201cIn the state shoot,\u00a0there are a lot of older participants, partially\u00a0because it isn\u2019t a cheap\u00a0sport and because you\u00a0it tends to bring shooters\u00a0who are more accomplished.\u00a0But, by diversifying to\u00a0other types of shooting,\u00a0that brings in different\u00a0dynamics and types of\u00a0people that will plug\u00a0<\/span>into the region while they are here.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Andrew Miller, from the Susquehanna River Valley Visitors Bureau, agreed.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cIt has the potential to be a win-win for visitor spending and a positive economic impact,\u201d he said. \u201cAny business that can bring people in and keep them here potentially overnight helps make the need for a hotel in that region more relevant and will likely be music to the ears to a developer wanting a potential investment to be enhanced.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Not all early response to the news was met with excitement, however.<\/span><\/p>\n

Tina Schock, of Westminster, Maryland, admitted being nervous about potential changes while cheered on her husband during the state shoot Tuesday afternoon.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWe love this shoot and<\/span>\u00a0the facility, and I have some concern with talks about it expanding and getting bigger,\u201d she said. \u201cWhat effect will that have on the trap shooting events at this place?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Jerry Stefkovich, of Washington, Pennsylvania, is also devoted completely to trap shooting, attending competitions all over the country.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cChange can be scary no matter what, and I do love this facility, but I\u2019m open to whatever happens that help get more young people into shotgun shooting in general \u2014 even if it is through sporting clays or skeet,\u201d he said.<\/span><\/p>\n

For more information about the Northeast Shooting Complex project, all are welcome to a special meeting at the state shoot at 6 p.m. today, or you can visit\u00a0www.pssashotgunning.org<\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n