Hutchinson Engineering has finalized the plans to complete the Jacksonville Shooting Range project.
Jacksonville Police Department Deputy Chief Chad Moore says the city will start advertising opening bids at the end of February and contractor meetings will follow on March 9th.
Moore says plenty of work has already been completed at the 200-acre shooting range south of Lake Jacksonville by off-duty officers, like setting up shooting berms, running water lines and pouring half of the flooring inside the building.
“The building is in place and has been up for a few years now. It doesn’t have any walls inside and is just a shell. It has windows and doors, but the plumbing and flooring needs to be done. Once that is done they can put up walls, finish the bathroom, kitchen and classroom area.”
Moore stressed that the complex will be used for much more than just a shooting range.
“The Mobile Training Unit Nine, run out of Jerseyville, hosts a lot of training for law enforcement. They want to use our facility since it is centrally located in our district. The vast majority of the training won’t involve firearms at all. This is a really good opportunity for local and area law enforcement to come train.”
Moore says the JPD will wait to hear the bid prices from Hutchinson Engineering before setting a target date for completion. An update will be provided at the next Jacksonville City Council meeting.
Payment for the facility will come from the city drug fund.