Community Meeting - October 30, 2025

For a brief overview of the Virginia Sports Park pre-application for a conditional use permit to construct a clay shooting range at 0 Walton Road, please see "About the Shooting Range" here.

On October 30, 2025, a community meeting was hosted by Virginia Sports Park (VSP) at the Goochland Administration Building regarding the construction of a 16-station clay shooting range and archery center on property leased from Luck Stone at 0 Walton Road to operate 365 days a year from approximately 9am to dusk.

Per county requirements, VSP mailed notices to neighboring property owners approximately 15 days prior to the meeting (October 14, 2025, post-mark), but it is unknown what radial distance was utilized, as many residents within a 2-mile radius, the distance at which shotgun noise can be heard, never received the developer's notice but were notified by a hand-delivered community letter canvassed by neighbors. Additionally, because this proposal lies close to the Goochland-Louisa county border, many Louisa residents within a half-mile and one-mile radius were omitted from notification, either by the developer or failure of the USPS to deliver the notice.

Supporters of the VSP development at 0 Walton Road outnumbered neighboring residents roughly three to one. It was clear that this proposal had been in the development stage for years, and the developer had the luxury of notifying their supporters long before actual neighbors of the parcel even knew this development was a possibility. While several prominent Goochland figures were in attendance as supporters, many supporters came from outside county lines.

At least four of the five Goochland Board of Supervisor members were in attendance (Vaughters was not seen but may have been present), along with Goochland County Administrator, Dr. Raley. Once the room reached capacity, overflow rooms were set-up, but citizens in those rooms were unable to hear most of the presentation due to speakers not speaking clearly into the microphone.

The primary speakers on behalf of the development were Adnan Hamidi, Director, and Aynsley Miller Fisher, freelance author and presumed member of the VSP board. Tom Winfree, President of VSP and also the Chairman of the Goochland County Board of Supervisors (District 3), introduced the presentation and noted that he was recusing himself from the eventual Board of Supervisors vote on the conditional use permit, due to conflict of interest. The development is being promoted as a non profit venture, with any admission charges to cover cost and not the pockets of its developers, but while financial gain may not be a factor in this development, influence certainly will be.

Two mile radius of the proposed development at 0 Walton Road

Despite advertising the community meeting as an opportunity to "discuss this proposal," neighboring property owners were given no time to raise their concerns or actually discuss the proposed development. VSP spent over an hour marketing the proposal as being "good for the whole community," as an economic boon for the county, and an opportunity to engage local youth in responsible use of firearms, but no time was allotted for opposing concerns or public comment.

From Google Maps

VSP stated that the facility would resemble the Bull Run Shooting Center in Centerville, VA, and that the proposed VSP facility in Goochland would occupy a larger tract of land and afford more buffering for neighbors than the Bull Run facility. That statement is patently false. While the footprint of the shooting stations at Bull Run might be smaller than the proposed area for VSP, the Bull Run facility is buffered by over a thousand acres of undeveloped land and land occupied by a water treatment facility, a water park, and sports park.

The VSP facility at Goochland would occupy only 75-acres on a relatively narrow parcel with nearest existing residences only 300 feet from the property line. At that distance, the property owner would be subjected to anywhere from 114 dBA to 131 dBA, simply by living on his own property, when hearing damage occurs at 85 dBA and above. According to GIS estimates, approximately 300 residences are within a 1.5-mile radius of the proposal, and other residents will be within that hearing-damaging radius.

As Adnan Hamidi, Director of VSP, attempted to wrap up the meeting by briefly reading through submitted comment cards, it became apparent to attendees that they would not be permitted to speak, and many began to shout their concerns from their seats. These concerns primarily centered around four main issues: noise nuisance, lead contamination of the environment, increased traffic on unpaved (hard top) roads, and property devaluation.

When confronted about the noise pollution, Mr. Hamidi simultaneously downplayed its effect while also conceding the reality of its nuisance with comments that "we want to be good neighbors and will refrain from beginning before 9am so as not to wake up neighbors" (paraphrased).

In response to a comment about lead birdshot being dispersed into wetlands, risking the well water of surrounding neighbors, Mr. Hamidi stated that there would be a lead management plan, but no details of such plan could be shared at that time.

As for property devaluation, home owners were told that this development would bolster their property values and be seen as an amenity. However, a Google search reveals that the average home loses at least 3.7% of value when in close proximity to a gun range.

When neighboring property owners continued to express their frustration, Mr. Hamidi stated that he would look into holding a second community meeting to address concerns.

Neighbors left the meeting visibly frustrated, and it remains to be seen if VSP will host another community meeting prior to submitting their full conditional use permit application.

VSP Speakers & Supporters:

• Aynsley Miller Fisher, freelance author

• Adnan Hamidi, Director of VSP

• Tom Winfree, Chairman of Goochland Board of Supervisors (District 3)

• Jad Malaeb, Land Use Development Manager for Luck Stone

• William Walter Raymond, Distinguished Old Gentleman Sportsman

• Herb Teaching, Range Master (name likely noted incorrectly)

• George McGovern, Deputy Regional Director, Boy Scouts of America

• Greg Nachman, Ducks Unlimited Regional Chair (last name may be incorrect)

• Marcy Reese, Head Coach of Virginia Archery Center, Head Coach of Virginia Archery Academy, Virginia State Coordinator for USA Archery

• Donna Reynolds, Owner of Bandit's Ridge

• Mike Collawn, Owner of Goochland Gunworks

• Carol Taylor, Goochland County Chamber of Commerce

• Manuel Alvarez, Jr., Former Goochland County Administrator and Former Board of Supervisor Member