SIMI VALLEY : Commission Studies Firing Range Plan

A proposal to build a firing range for the Simi Valley Police Department will be reviewed Wednesday night by the city’s Planning Commission.

The proposed range, to be located on the city’s west end, would save $25,000 to $30,000 a year in overtime pay, Deputy City Manager Bob Heitzman said.

The city would save overtime because some of the 125 Simi Valley police officers would be able to complete their required range practice during regular work hours. Now, officers practice during off hours and are paid to travel to the Ventura County Sheriff’s Department Academy at Camarillo Airport, Heitzman said.

The budget to build the new range, which could be completed by late June, is $25,000.

The neighborhood council for the area near the proposed range has not reviewed the project, City Planning Manager Wolf Ascher said.

The proposed range is about 1,800 feet north of Tierra Rejada Road and about 3,000 feet west of Llevarancho Road. It is surrounded by hills on three sides and cannot be seen from Tierra Rejada Road, Ascher said.

Sgt. Bob Gardner said it is also too far away from houses and other development to be dangerous or create a noise problem.

According to a city report, the closest residence is about 235 feet away and separated from the range by a 50-foot-high ridge.

“The normal noise you hear . . . traffic, airplanes . . . is louder than our guns most of the time,” Gardner said.