Agenda - 03-16-2021; 8-a - Minutes

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9 1 be shooting, so public safety can reassure callers, and deputies will understand into what they 2 are walking. 3 Commissioner Hamilton asked if any calls have had issues of safety. 4 Sheriff Blackwood said maybe one call out of fifty. He said he will follow up with specific 5 numbers. He encouraged the Commissioners to ride with deputies to see what kinds of calls 6 they get and how deputies handle situations. 7 Commissioner Hamilton asked if there is a sense of how many people target shoot in the 8 County. 9 Sheriff Blackwood said numbers are different based on the different districts, with fewer 10 shooters in southern part of County, and more in the northern part. He estimates less than 250 11 people total. 12 Commissioner McKee said for historical context this issue has come up over several 13 years, and the task force spent much of its time discussing this very topic. He said he agrees 14 with the Sheriff's estimations. He said he skeet shoots 3-4 times a year, but others do so more 15 regularly. He said where he lives it is normal, and he has heard it all his life. He said it is a 16 different situation in a subdivision, where residents do not know what kind of gun a person is 17 shooting, and there is a wide range of how far the projectiles will go. He said this was a major 18 part of the shooting task force's discussion to try to find a middle ground between the right to 19 own firearms and when to use them. He said it boils down to noise, and whether the noise 20 aggravates the neighbors. 21 Chair Price said there was discussion on how far they should impose the regulation. 22 She said a 300 foot buffer gives room to shoot, but a 600 or 900 foot buffer gives no room to 23 practice. 24 Commissioner Greene said this most recently came to the Board over a year ago due to 25 complaints from the west side of Carrboro, but the lots were large and there was nothing the 26 Board could do to regulate the issue at the time. She asked if there is anything the Board can 27 do at this time. 28 John Roberts said the discussion in September 2020 was regarding subdivisions, and a 29 distance buffer, density and urbanized developments. He said it is not feasible to make 30 ordinances around subdivisions due to the number and variety. 31 Commissioner Bedford said the Board looked at Durham's noise ordinance, but Durham 32 found it unenforceable. She said a family came in front of the Board who agreed to only shoot 33 one day of a week and communicated this to neighbors, which worked well. 34 Chair Price said there is very little the BOCC can do, and agreed with the Sheriff about 35 calling 911 before one shoots. She said if someone contacts Commissioners with concerns, 36 they should also call 911. 37 Sheriff Blackwood said the topic has been discussed many times and all options have 38 been explored, including what other counties do. He said an educational program may be 39 helpful in neighborhoods where lots of shooting is happening to help with expectations, and 40 tools for resolving issues. He said he would be happy to facilitate this type of endeavor. He 41 said people feel entitled to shoot on their own land, while others feel entitled to not have to hear 42 shooting on their own land. 43 Commissioner Dorosin said a community education policy makes a lot of sense, but he 44 is not ready to jettison the discussion of buffers. He clarified that if a 300-foot buffer is 45 instituted, no shooting could happen in a buffer of 300 feet around a residential structure. He 46 reviewed a map in the agenda packet. 47 John Roberts said yes. 48 Commissioner Dorosin said each map has more shaded areas, because the buffer 49 distance is increasing with each one. He said the number of residences does not change. 50 John Roberts said yes.