Groton votes for zoning

[KBCraig]

http://www.wmur.com/news/9266469/detail.html

Groton Residents Vote For Zoning To Fight Firearms Center
Interim Plan Will Allow Town To Write Ordinances

POSTED: 10:53 am EDT May 24, 2006

GROTON, N.H. -- Residents overwhelmingly approved an interim zoning plan aimed at keeping a private military-style training center out of town.

In a special vote Tuesday, residents approved the plan that makes the town a rural district and bans new commercial and industrial development for a year unless a special exemption is granted. The vote was 138-45.

Groton has no zoning, and the interim plan gives town officials a year to craft zoning ordinances. The town's voters had voted against zoning plans four times previously.

The vote comes after William Gifford, of Rye, proposed building a 150-acre firearms training center with indoor and outdoor shooting ranges. The North American Training Lodge complex would have been located on a 1,000-acre property Giffords planned to buy.

Gordon Coursey, a logger and log home builder, brought his mother, son and daughter-in-law to vote "No" on the zoning plan.

"Now you've got these people telling us how we ought to live. What's the country founded on? I believe it was free enterprise, freedom to live the way we want," Coursey said.

Contractor Shawn Farnsworth said he isn't a big fan of regulation, but the firing range complex would be too close to residential areas -- and too loud.

"I build houses for a living," Farnsworth said. "I love no zoning. But something like this -- I'm all for (the ordinance). This project is going to knock your land value down 70 percent."

[Pat McCotter]

http://www.wmur.com/news/9266469/detail.html

Contractor Shawn Farnsworth said he isn't a big fan of regulation, but the firing range complex would be too close to residential areas -- and too loud.

"I build houses for a living," Farnsworth said. "I love no zoning. But something like this -- I'm all for (the ordinance). This project is going to knock your land value down 70 percent."

The camel is in the tent now. I hope he enjoys the hoops he will have to jump through to build houses in the future.

[aries]

How dare people learn to shoot in a, safe, supervised environment!

"But my property value!!"

[tracysaboe]

Groton has no zoning, and the interim plan gives town officials a year to craft zoning ordinances. The town's voters had voted against zoning plans four times previously.

See, that's the problem with Democracy. If they don't like the vote. They just keep voting over and over again untill they get it.

You don't have a "right" to the value of your property. Only it's integretty. Of course, if people didn't buy homes on easy money policies with cheep loans and cheep money, they'd probably own their home and wouldn't need to worry as much about it.

I kind-of feel like, this is another case of people worrying about things they wouldn't need to worry about if it wasn't for government interference. And so they get government to do even more coersive things.

Tracy

[Lex]

 

[AlanM]

Forgive them, for they know not what they do.

[tracysaboe]

Forgive them, for they know not what they do.

Word. 

TRacy

[Dave Ridley]

I looked up Mr. Coursey's number and talked to him briefly yesterday.   He's definitely one of us even though he's never heard of us.  We are to talk at more length today possibly.

[hook]

Actually the punch line is the fire arms center can still be built. It will just have set backs, height limits, landscaping requirements, etc.

[Recumbent ReCycler]

If I lived in Groton, outside of the compact area of town, where people can shoot on their private property, I would put a backstop near the edge of my property and let all of my friends know that they can come out any time they want to do some plinking, and that they should invite their friends.  I would have a donation bucket or something where people can donate whatever amount they want.  I would also have a bucket where people can put their used brass (so that I could reload it for my own use)  The rules would be that after 7pm, before 7am, and on Sundays, only suppressed firearms with subsonic ammo could be used.  And of course, shots should only be directed toward the backstop.  (I would be exempt from all rules of course, and I could make exemptions at will.)  I would not operate it as a business, but donations would go toward fixing up the shooting area.  I do hope to start a suppressor manufacturing business sometime within the next few years.  Of course, if the training center were opened, then I would only allow friends to shoot on my property.  I will always encourage the use of firearms suppressors (sometimes referred to as "silencers").

[Ruger Mason]

"I build houses for a living," Farnsworth said. "I love no zoning. But something like this -- I'm all for (the ordinance). This project is going to knock your land value down 70 percent."

The camel is in the tent now. I hope he enjoys the hoops he will have to jump through to build houses in the future.

Many developers love zoning and other land use restrictions, especially when they're politically connected.  Keeps out the non-politically connected competition.

[Ruger Mason]

BTW, this sounds just like what the did in Unity to keep out a specific housing development.

Its called a "retrospective law" and its unconstitutional.