Potential Skeet/Trap Range near River in Baton Rouge

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Planning Commission tasked with taking on shooting ranges, reception halls

ALEXANDRIA BURRIS
January 26, 2017
At the request of Councilman Chandler Loupe, the Metro Council on Wednesday agreed to ask the Planning Commission to study possible changes to the Unified Development Code for the regulation of outdoor shooting ranges and reception venues in rural areas.

Loupe said his requests are based on separate inquiries about a possible trapshooting location along River Road and a wedding barn in his district.

The councilman said he had been in communication with Planning Director Frank Duke about the two inquiries prior to this week’s council meeting.

Duke suggested expanding the study to include subjecting all shooting ranges and reception hall venues to conditional use permits rather than rezoning individual tracts of land, Loupe said. The planning commissioner will establish criteria for a conditional use permits if an entity wants to establish a shooting range or reception venue in rural area, Loupe added. Duke did not speak on the two items at the meeting.

“Rather than rezoning a tracts property from C-AB-1 or C-AB-2, I’m going to suggest that we we go about it with conditional use permits that way the zoning change is not in perpetuity,” Loupe said. “If we change the zoning on a particular project by means of a conditional use permit we have more control over that property now and in the future.”

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