Hoffman Estates not worried about gun sales at Cabela's

The Chicago area will get a major new gun merchant in September when Cabela's open its first Illinois store in Hoffman Estates.

The Rev. Jesse Jackson isn't targeting Cabela's, but he was in the area Tuesday to say he wants to ban assault-style weapons, including ones the outdoor sports superstore will sell in Hoffman Estates.

Jackson did say he wanted to prohibit the sale of only the guns use for "people hunting," not for animal hunting.

Though there's not always agreement on the definition, assault weapons generally refer to those used in the military and guns that are semiautomatic -- the type of guns made at the D.S. Arms plant in Lake Barrington where Jackson protested Tuesday.

Hoffman Estates Mayor William McLeod isn't worried about the village's safety or image.

"Cabela's is a high-end store," McLeod said. "They sell rifles and that kind of stuff. The gang-bangers don't go to Cabela's to buy guns."

Assault weapons are illegal in Chicago, but Jackson wants suburban bans, saying weapons are purchased in suburban stores and brought to the city.

"Most people in Barrington did not know this gun shop was here," Jackson said of the D.S. Arms facility. "These are the manufacturers of the weapons that end up on our streets" -- an assertion a company representative denied Tuesday.

Cabela's does sell some semiautomatic guns used for hunting, personal protection and target-shooting, including semiautomatic AK-47s, store spokesman David Draper said.

"The difference between these AKs and the ones you see in Iraq is that the ones in Iraq are fully automatic," said Draper.

Draper said Cabela's "follows the law to the letter" in terms of background checks and waiting periods, and also routinely hosts gun-safety seminars at its stores.

During the planning stages for the Cabela's, McLeod said a resident did voice concern to the village board about Cabela's gun sales. But McLeod said the resident's complaints weren't justified.

The 185,000-square-foot Cabela's is set to open Sept. 21 in the Prairie Stone business park off I-90. The village is spending $18 million on the store, which is expected to lure 4 million visitors and generate millions of dollars in sales taxes annually.