Elgin council's poor choice on gun range

With one vote, Elgin City Council members Steffen, Shaw, Martinez, Gavin and Dunne eliminated a critical resource for thousands of the most vulnerable families within Elgin and neighboring areas.

Their "yes" vote on the Fox Valley Shooting Club's proposal to open a gun range in a residential strip mall is forcing Easter Seals, a vital resource for disabled children and adults, to close. Furthermore, this vote shutters five kindergarten classrooms under U-46's "More at 4" program. These resources are vital to the lives of thousands of area residents and their absence will not go unnoticed by families who have nowhere else to turn for help.

Dozens of residents and business owners within the community spoke at the city council meeting requesting the shooting range use an alternate site in a free-standing building, away from residential areas and schools. Multiple equivalent properties were proposed and ignored. There is a solution where Elgin can bring the shooting range to town without negatively impacting homeowners the city's most vulnerable residents.

Steffen, Shaw and Martinez are up for re-election in 2019. They will have to answer to voters for their refusal to protect thousands of children and adults with disabilities, their refusal to listen to homeowner's concerns, and the cavalier ease with which they devastated a long time property owner within the city.

The council has one last opportunity to do the right thing for the community by removing the vote from the consent agenda at the next city council meeting and re-engaging the range owner to work on a more appropriate compromise that meets the needs of the entire community. I sincerely hope they take advantage of that opportunity instead of further disenfranchising the community. If they ignore us now, we won't be ignored in 2019.

Megan Larson

South Elgin