New indoor range in Henrico?

[ARCHIVED THREAD] - New indoor range in Henrico?

Posted: 8/4/2011 4:28:57 PM EDT

I just got the new Henrico Citizen and right smack dab on the front page was a story on a new range being built near Willow Lawn in Henrico. I don't think the story is on their webpage yet.

Anyone else heard of this?

ETA: Atricle: http://www.henricocitizen.com/index.php/news/article/indoor_shooting_range_coming_to_henrico_03321

Posted: 8/4/2011 5:43:42 PM EDT

[#1]

Bumped into a gentleman at another range that mentioned it was being built in the old colony house furniture building (6020 west broad).

I have a business card from one of the gents involved, I'll have to give him a ring and see what's up.

ETA: Found a facebook link, but not sure if this is the same one I mentioned above:
https://www.facebook.com/colonialshootingacademy?sk=wall

Posted: 8/4/2011 6:08:35 PM EDT

[#2]

Thats the one! The largest in the country! Thats a pretty bold statement... Think it'll be anything like that German indoor range?

http://colonialshooting.com/

http://www.ar15.com/forums/t_1_5/1200401__ber_Shooting_In_Germany_______________.html

Posted: 8/4/2011 6:10:48 PM EDT

[#3]

Hope they are not affiliated with the same group as Silver Eagle.....

Posted: 8/4/2011 6:17:08 PM EDT

[#4]

Man you guys are slow on the draw. This has been out a while now.

Should have about 52 lanes and from what I understand, a full tac range in the basement.

Posted: 8/4/2011 6:32:42 PM EDT

[#5]

CSA...that's an intersting play.

Posted: 8/5/2011 4:05:13 AM EDT

[#6]

This could be awesome. Assuming it's operated in a safe and competent manner by people who aren't asshats - which is unfortunately a bold set of assumptions for many of these places - it looks like it could be a fantastic facility in a very convenient location.

Posted: 8/5/2011 4:53:27 AM EDT

[#7]

Quoted:
This could be awesome. Assuming it's operated in a safe and competent manner by people who aren't asshats - which is unfortunately a bold set of assumptions for many of these places - it looks like it could be a fantastic facility in a very convenient location.

I think that this facility is going to rock some people's worlds. It has all the makings of being a top notch facility.

Posted: 8/5/2011 6:38:48 AM EDT

[#8]

Quoted:

Quoted:
This could be awesome. Assuming it's operated in a safe and competent manner by people who aren't asshats - which is unfortunately a bold set of assumptions for many of these places - it looks like it could be a fantastic facility in a very convenient location.

I think that this facility is going to rock some people's worlds. It has all the makings of people a top notch facility.

Can you provide any details on who is behind it and their backgrounds? I'm genuinely curious, as I'd heard rumblings about something like this for a couple years (I heard about it from a rep from a body armor company who used to be in Richmond) but I hadn't seen this location and specifics until today.

PM if you don't want to post it.

Posted: 8/5/2011 11:02:56 AM EDT

[#9]

Here is the article from the Henrico Citizen, which has some more info:

Article

This is a solid crew of people involved. Ed Coleman is on the board at Cavalier Rifle & Pistol and is a good guy, Courtney Spotts of Spotts & Carneal (the real estate company involved) is a serious firearms enthusiast as well.

This is too close to my office. I am going to end up wasting a lot of my lunch time and lunch money at this place.

Posted: 8/5/2011 12:26:59 PM EDT

[#10]

Quoted:
Here is the article from the Henrico Citizen, which has some more info:

Article

This is a solid crew of people involved. Ed Coleman is on the board at Cavalier Rifle & Pistol and is a good guy, Courtney Spotts of Spotts & Carneal (the real estate company involved) is a serious firearms enthusiast as well.

This is too close to my office. I am going to end up wasting a lot of my lunch time and lunch money at this place.

The article wan't up yesterday. Thanks for the link!

Posted: 8/5/2011 1:54:17 PM EDT

[#11]

I was excited about this until I read that former HPD chief Stanley is going to be an instructor.... WTF? That man hasn't even had to load his own weapon for 15 years. He is the one who couldn't remember the words to the Pledge of Allegiance at the start of one of the NASCAR races in Richmond. I hope the rest of the staff will be of much high caliber.

That being said, I will probably pony up the money and get in line...

Posted: 8/5/2011 2:16:27 PM EDT

[#12]

Quoted:
I was excited about this until I read that former HPD chief Stanley is going to be an instructor.... WTF? That man hasn't even had to load his own weapon for 15 years. He is the one who couldn't remember the words to the Pledge of Allegiance at the start of one of the NASCAR races in Richmond. I hope the rest of the staff will be of much high caliber.

That was indeed an odd choice for an instructor. My impression is that street cops (who aren't firearms instructors) are a crapshoot as far as competence with guns - but police brass/admin are almost invariably out of touch in that area.

I'll wait and see what he's going to be teaching, and what his credentials are in that area, before passing judgment. It may very well be that he's going to be teaching admin/policy classes to LE instructors or teaching about interacting with LE as an armed citizen. Or it could be that he actually has firearms instruction experience despite being a chief.

Posted: 8/5/2011 3:32:19 PM EDT

[#13]

Chief Stanley probably has a few tricks up his sleeve. He started out on the street with Henrico and worked his way up. At the very least, having him on board should help put a friendly face on it to the county board of supervisors.
Either which way, I am looking forward to this place opening! Getting my money ready.

Posted: 8/6/2011 7:24:49 AM EDT

[#14]

Six million is a LOT of coin to be dropping on a place like that. I hope they have a solid business plan and that they're not overestimating the market.

Posted: 8/6/2011 7:45:04 AM EDT

[#15]

Quoted:
Six million is a LOT of coin to be dropping on a place like that. I hope they have a solid business plan and that they're not overestimating the market.

Not a lot of call for a shell like that and it has been sitting for some time. Demolishing the building wouldn't improve the site that much on that stretch of Broad.

I hope they make a go of it too, but the liability coverage of something like that on that scale must be titanic. Like a lot of these ventures, it may require a series of visionaries / managers / owners before it all settles down.

...or reverts to mini-storage. It certainly is a ballsy move in this economic cycle, but probably truly emblematic of the times in which we live, or are going to live in.

In any event, I'd like to check it out and I wish them well.

Posted: 8/6/2011 8:03:19 AM EDT

[#16]

Quoted:
Six million is a LOT of coin to be dropping on a place like that. I hope they have a solid business plan and that they're not overestimating the market.

I'm guessing they have at least some reasonable expectation of some significant LE/gov training money. There is a real vacuum of places for most LE to train in Richmond. Most of the local agencies have minimal if any facilities, only Henrico as far as I know has a real indoor range, and none to my knowledge have a shoothouse. Many of the feds do at least some of their training at CAVRPC because they don't have their own range locally.

The state and FBI were teamed up recently trying to build a firearms training facility out in Powhatan (or thereabouts) but as far as I know that fizzled out. So there is a need for that, certainly, and perhaps that's part of the play here in bringing Chief Stanley onboard.

Posted: 8/6/2011 8:06:05 AM EDT

[#17]

Quoted:
Six million is a LOT of coin to be dropping on a place like that. I hope they have a solid business plan and that they're not overestimating the market.

There is a lot to do with that building. It is basically an abandoned, rundown furniture store/warehouse. They'll need a lot of steel plate and a lot of ventilation equipment to do what they're planning, in addition to all the usual commercial buildout stuff.

I'll just say again that Ed Coleman is not a newbie to running a gun club, and Court Spotts is not a newbie to commercial real estate. So I'm guessing they've thought about all this.

Posted: 8/6/2011 9:19:49 AM EDT

[#18]

Quoted:

Quoted:

Six million is a LOT of coin to be dropping on a place like that. I hope they have a solid business plan and that they're not overestimating the market.

There is a lot to do with that building. It is basically an abandoned, rundown furniture store/warehouse. They'll need a lot of steel plate and a lot of ventilation equipment to do what they're planning, in addition to all the usual commercial buildout stuff.

I'll just say again that Ed Coleman is not a newbie to running a gun club, and Court Spotts is not a newbie to commercial real estate. So I'm guessing they've thought about all this.

When I was part of opening an indoor range in California a friend and range owner said, "John, you're taking a perfectly good hobby and fucking it up."

And he was right.

Posted: 8/6/2011 4:47:13 PM EDT

[#19]

Quoted:
Six million is a LOT of coin to be dropping on a place like that. I hope they have a solid business plan and that they're not overestimating the market.

It is alot of money. A few years ago, we looked into opening a range in the style that this one is going to be and our investors estimated it at 3-4 million. After attending the NRA's Range Development Conference, we decided not to pursue it. I wish CSA the best of good luck, and I can't wait to shoot there.

Posted: 8/12/2011 3:50:06 AM EDT

[#20]

This made the Richmond news yesterday...

http://www.wtvr.com/news/wtvr-henrico-gun-range-to-be-one-of-the-countrys-largest-20110811,0,3967568.story

Posted: 8/12/2011 3:37:35 PM EDT

[#21]

Quoted:
This made the Richmond news yesterday...

http://www.wtvr.com/news/wtvr-henrico-gun-range-to-be-one-of-the-countrys-largest-20110811,0,3967568.story

Saw that. Not a bad article either.

[ARCHIVED THREAD] - New indoor range in Henrico?

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