HUNTINGTON BEACH : Gun Range to Stay Closed to the Public

The police shooting range at Huntington Central Park has been closed again to the public because so few people had been using the facility.

Operated by the Huntington Beach Police Officers’ Assn., the range opened to the public in May as a gesture of good will, said Terry Orosco, who is in charge of range operations. “But people weren’t showing up,” Orosco said, and “it wasn’t economically feasible to have it open to the public.”

The range, once open to the public, was closed for two years to everyone but law enforcement agencies because it needed repairs.

As a result of the decision earlier this month to close the range to the public, local gun owners urged the City Council this week to reopen it. But Police Officers Assn. President Richard Wright said plans to improve the range and make it safer are on hold until a lease agreement is made with the city, which owns the property.

“The POA still wants to refurbish the range to a state we can use it safely,” Wright said.