The Jefferson County Board of Zoning Appeals (BZA) ruled on Jan. 23 that a business located between the Cavaland subdivision and the Shepherdstown Battlefield could have a Conditional Use Permit (CUP) to sell, manufacture and test firearms on its property. The vote was 2-1 (the BZA is a five-member body, but there is one vacancy and one person was absent).

QRF Solutions K9, located at 1899 Trough Road, has had a CUP to train dogs at that location for several years. Neighbors have reported hearing frequent gunfire on that ten-acre property in recent months. Some folks driving along the Osborne Farm driveway, which is within the boundary of the Shepherdstown Battlefield, have said that they’ve seen a firing range set up quite close to that driveway.

About 40 people attended the public hearing, most of whom were against granting the CUP. Approximately a dozen speakers opposed the application, only one person (other than the applicant) spoke in favor. There were other items on the agenda, but few people attended for those.

Much of the opposition centered on gunfire. The applicant said that any gunfire on his property comes from his personal use. If that’s true, he’s on solid legal ground, subject to rules about proximity to neighbors. He can even legally invite friends to shoot targets on his property. But the rules are very different if gunfire becomes part of his business.

In addition to potential danger to neighbors, gunfire in the immediate area might endanger tourists and tour guides at Shepherdstown Battlefield. I’m a member of the Shepherdstown Battlefield Preservation Association (SBPA), which recently began holding tours in the area. SBPA hopes to increase the number of tours there in the near future.

An additional consideration is the nature of the business itself. Does a gun manufacturing business, even a small one, belong in or near an area zoned residential? I think not, and I said so at the hearing. The board’s chair, Tyler Quynn, agreed and voted to deny the CUP request. He said he didn’t think such a use was appropriate for that neighborhood.

The other two members of the BZA seemed to think that CUP requests must be granted if such requests are filled out properly. If that’s true, we don’t have zoning in Jefferson County. As I’ve said before, the news that we really don’t have zoning would astound and anger a large majority of the residents of our county.

Those other two members did agree to modify the CUP by requiring QRF to conduct any testing of guns manufactured or sold off site, or “barrel-test” them (fire them into a large barrel filled with gel).

Historically, many folks elected to the Jefferson County Commission, and many of the people they’ve appointed to the BZA and the Jefferson County Planning Commission, have seemed to think that zoning doesn’t really mean zoning. I hope the four new members of the Jefferson County Commission think differently, and will so act, when appointing members of Jefferson County Planning Commission and BZA — the county agencies charged with implementing our zoning ordinance.

John Doyle is a 26-year former member of the West Virginia House of Delegates. He can be reached at rjohndoyle@comcast.net.