Bullets discharged at the Manteca Sportsmen Club’s rifle range on South Airport Way near the San Joaquin River have been found up to a mile away from the non-profit’s property.

The range has been temporarily closed by the county.

And in order for it to reopen, there will need to be 14 safety canopies installed at the rifle range.

The improvements are before the San Joaquin County Planning Commission when they meet Thursday,  Aug. 7, at 6 p.m. at the county administration center in downtown Stockton.

The Planning Commission August 13, 1964 approved a use permit for a shooting range on land owned by the Manteca Sportsmen.

The Conditions of Approval stated, “The permitted use shall not at any time develop into a nuisance, as herein defined. If, in the opinion of the Planning Commission or Board of Supervisors, any County Ordinance or State Law or regulations or conditions attached hereto are being violated in connection with the operation of this use, that they retain the power to revoke or modify this permit.”   

In February 2022, a San Joaquin County Sheriff’s Department investigation discovered that bullets from rifles fired from the shooting range at the Manteca Sportsmen’s club property were landing outside of the shooting range property, including up to one-mile to the north.

The site a mile away contains two educational facilities.

They are the Durham Ferry Outdoor Education Center, a regional center for STEM and environmental exploration owned and operated by the San Joaquin County Office of Education, and the Historic Durham Ferry Academy charter school.

The Manteca Sportsmen Club entered into a Compliance Agreement signed on March 9, 2022.

 The agreement included the following limitations on the site:

*Immediately stop the outdoor use of certain types of rifles on the firing range that are more likely to result in bullets leaving the property.

*staff the range with a certified rangemaster during all shooting activities to ensure shooters are operating at their shooting stations safely.  

*submit engineered plans for physical improvement that will prevent bullets from leaving the subject property; and

*make changes to the shooting range operations to ensure the approved use of the property will not be a nuisance.

The club complied by temporarily shutting down the range until they could get needed improvements in place.

To contact Dennis Wyatt, email dwyatt@manteccabulletin.com