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[deckhandmike]

Maybe just do a lease of the property to an individual with a waiver. Tons of guys lease hunting rights to a ranch. Maybe check into that route. I'm sure you could find a wealthy gun enthusiast that would want to spend that kind of cash for a private area to "hunt" some rabbits and squirrels. Even if 99% of the day was spent sighting in the guns. I'm looking at a hunting lease just so I can have my own private range.

[8541marine]

Thanks guys. I appreciate everyone's input. I will prob just jeep this open for family and "friends" right now.

[BumBum]

I am an attorney, and my first thoughts are once the county knows you are operating a business, they will want permits and their fair share of your profits, otherwise known as taxes. You could have liability for injuries, fires that result from a bullet striking the metal.

I like your idea and I would be interested in paying to shoot on your land. I recommend you research this issue some more. As a start look into how landowners charge an access fee to hunters.

Beyond any business requirements and liability insurance, shooting ranges have to be permitted by the State of CA to operate. Let's assume your land is at least 7 miles from the nearest house/road in all directions so the idiot who fires a 300Win Mag at 45 degrees up won't hit anyone. The first step is an enviromental impact report, which can be anywhere from $5,000 to $50,000 (if your land is a watershed.) even you if operate as a non profit. And hope they don't discover a new breed of Kangaroo Rat. Then you need a plan for lead recovery, usually a contract with a range lead miner, and a schedule. Then because it will open to people, you need to put in bathrooms. You really need friends with deep pockets to get started properly. And if you go without any of that, and a neighbor/tourist complains, it's over with.

If you ever do plan on building a commercial range, make sure that you do all of your planning ahead of time and get all of your ducks in a row legally. Don't even think about doing this on the sly, because if they catch you, the county will likely never issue you permits due to a lack of trust on what they will view as a high-risk business. I've seen it happen with other businesses - once you get on the local government's radar, life becomes very difficult.

[Jimi Jah]

Lawyers will kill off this idea, quickly.

It's a litigation nation.

[bigbearbear]

A pity you're not in the SF Bay Area. I'll say people who organize company events (team building, customer appreciation etc) would be very interested.

Perhaps not so much in the long range shooting but rather, the chance to use odd and funny targets you would otherwise not be able to use at a public range.

My team of engineers is having a team shoot this coming Sunday and we're going to a private property setup as a range. It is great because we don't have to deal with the public and we can do stuffs like rapid firing and using strange and funny targets.

One thing you may also want to consider, is to put in a trap field. It is simpler to master (compared to Skeet or sporting clay) and for a company shoot event, I tend to like have it as an option. And if you have it, shotgun vendors/local gunstores might rent your place for their event too. This is because clay target shotguns have to fit the shooter well and customers like being able to test drive those shotguns before buying.

Consider renting the entire place to a single customer (or a single group) one at a time, I think people who want a place like this would prefer to have the event like a private party.

[RandyD]

Lawyers will kill off this idea, quickly.

It's a litigation nation.

As an attorney, I disagree. I can give some time to researching this matter to facilitate the OP being able to charge a fee to use his land. The people that will kill this are the bureaucrats, who will interject themselves, impose unwanted regulations and taxes. My initial thoughts are if the OP restricts the number of people shooting to a select few to the point that neighbors are not annoyed, then he be free to do what he wants with his land. Look at this as if it were a lemonade stand. If you sell a few gallons of lemonade at one location, you are unlikely to receive any unwanted attention and can enjoy the lemonade stand and the profits. If your lemonade stand becomes a commodity drawing too many people, then you will draw the attention of bureaucrats.

[8541marine]

Randy

it's a tad over 6k acres, and the closest neighbor is well over a mile away. I have shot all through the night before (pvs-27&14's) with no complaints.
I would like to talk to you and see what you come up with. I do have our atty looking into it as well, but 2 heads prevail over 1. Please pm me.

[8541marine]

All great advice guys. Keep it coming. I need ideas.

[8541marine]

If anyone is interested in shooting here, please pm me.

[Untamed1972]

Just some advice from my own recent experiences with SD County: I just got thru getting building permits for my place, technically you pretty much can't do sh*t in this county without having to pay a laundry list of fees and jump thru a lot of permit hoops, so be very wary of getting the county on your back.

With that said, my understanding, as related to me people at the county is that they are "reactive" in their enforcement, so they will only likely come snooping around if someone complains, so I'm not sure how close your neighbors are and if they're OK with shooting. Just wanted to give you a heads up and how to be cautious. Truth is, with you place being as big as you say it is, you could prolly get away with it for along time, maybe forever even. But if you do get popped somehow, expect some hassle.

[8541marine]

Btt

[Rick S.]

private invites through a request form to use your private land isnt a business just because the guests donate., make the insurance a non issue with a waiver. i dont report car pooling gas money given to me to taxi co workers to and from work. also dont get charged to go fishing at friends private waters either. dont need permission to enjoy life on your land, others will try and dissuade you from your private adventure and fear the slavemasters seeking permission first. its gonna be fear mongered and money will be the topic in the mongering cause it takes money to play the fear mongering game lawyers, insurance etc bla bla bla. my out look anyway.

[8541marine]

Rick S.

Thanks for the input. That was kind of the way I was leaning. I already have the waivers made up, and all Im asking for is a "donation". Thank you.

[Rick S.]

youre welcome 8541marine,
quickly brainstorming, belive in yourself and what youre offering the community. have some pride about it and dont be afraid to make it something important for others to utilize. What i mean by that is, to make it work and be fun while still being supported enough to operate, make it available for only once a month, create a supply/demand by not being available everyday which takes time and money out of your pocket just for one or two guests to come have fun every couple weeks. something people wouldnt mind donating a bit to reserve a fun day, have a sign up list to visit the property. Make it an outing that people look forward to having once a month or once a couple of months. Then you can really see the interest and adjust accordingly saving loss of time and efforts on your part as you try and get this thing productive. not sure if i made clear sense but theres a little bit of an idea anyway. good luck.

[8541marine]

Rick S.
It totally made sense and thanks for the help. Im not trying to make this into a "public" range or some kind of massive money making machine either. Im just looking for some guys, a few times/weekends a month to come out, shoot, and help out with the expenses of the range. I have no intentions of trying to make it rich off this, lol (not saying that was what you were implying either). I will be posting an ad here soon to see if I can get some guys together to come out and have some fun. Again, Thanks for the help.