No home on the range

These guys can shoot a 3 1/2-inch by 1-inch clay target moving 60 miles per hour.

But landing a target the size of a small farm, now that's really difficult.

The Cape Girardeau County Gun Club has become a victim of Jackson's residential growth and must find a new place to shoot skeet by November. Either that, or its 55 members will be forced to drive about 90 miles to the nearest shooting range.

Over the past few years, the shooting range has developed around the Roy and Betty Meier farm just outside of Jackson near the junction of highways 34 and 72. Mike Kahle of rural Jackson has plans to build a senior housing development near the range.

The club has used the site since 1990. Previously, the group had its firing range at a location along Highway 74, but the land they were using was sold to a trucking company.

Recently, nearby residents have complained of the noise, and the Meiers have given the club until November -- three months after their lease expires -- to find a new spot.

"Everything is getting pretty close, so we decided it would be best if they found another place," Betty Meier said. "They've been really good. They've kept things mowed, and when our farmer puts out the crop, they don't shoot when he's out there. They've been very considerate. But with progress comes problems."

The club members say they have no ill feelings toward the Meiers either, and they understand the reasons why they must move.

But that doesn't make it easy.

Wide-open spaces

Finding a new spot isn't simply a matter of finding another field. State laws mandate that a shooting range must be 3,000 feet, or two-thirds of a mile, from the nearest occupied dwelling.

The club needs a space of about 40 acres.

"Unless we can find land that meets that qualification, we can't build there," said club member Gary Robbins. "We've talked with Realtors, and it has been a real problem, a real killer."

Robbins said money is an issue, but the club has received a generous contribution from the late Vince Joggerst. It may also get some financial backing from the Friends of the NRA and the Missouri Department of Conservation, but the club will not have access to any of those funds, including the donation, unless it finds new property.

So the club is campaigning, asking area farmers to sell or lease some land.

"Our optimal goal is to buy 40 acres or purchase a lease agreement as close to the Cape area as we can get," Robbins said. "We'll consider land in Scott, Bollinger or Perry counties."

If a lease agreement was reached, Robbins said, farmers could still farm most of the property.

If the club cannot find property by November, its members will have to shoot elsewhere. The nearest skeet and trap shooting ranges are in Farmington and Poplar Bluff.

"A lot of us have a lot of money tied up in shotguns," said club member Charles Ireland, a former university professor. "We simply enjoy the shooting sports. One thing I like about it is it's one of the few sports where old farts like me have a reasonably good chance in competing. There are not many facilities in this area available for shotgun sports."

Regardless of whether the club can find a new location by November, members refuse to give up.

"Don't say fold," said club member Bill Brentlinger of Cape Girardeau. "We're just looking for another location. We may have to frequently use other clubs for a while, until we figure something out."

bmiller@semissourian.com

243-6635