CAPE ELIZABETH – A long-simmering dispute between the Spurwink Rod & Gun Club and its neighbors in Cape Elizabeth’s Cross Hill subdivision may be coming to a resolution following submission Monday of a report recommending that the town pass an ordinance to regulate shooting ranges.

In September, the Town Council hired Kenneth Cole of Portland law firm Jensen Baird Gardner & Henry to interview leaders of the 57-year-old club, located at 1250 Sawyer Road, and local residents, in hopes of hammering out a compromise between the two groups.

In his Dec. 2 submission, Cole said the “Shooting Range Ordinance” he has drafted contains “specific management practices, hours of operation and liability insurance requirements” to which the gun club must adhere, while still respecting state limits on the regulation of firearms and the noise they create. If adopted, the ordinance would create a licensing requirement for shooting ranges, as well as a five-person committee to review applications. That group would include two town councilors, the town’s code enforcement officer, one member of the Spurwink Rod & Gun Club and one member of the public.

“The committee is charged with ensuring compliance of the shooting range facility and with the draft ordinance’s performance standards regarding shot containment and noise mitigation,” wrote Cole, in a memo accompanying the ordinance draft.

The Spurwink club would not be grandfathered, and would have to apply for a town license, as would any new shooting ranges that may wish to set up in town.

Incoming Council Chairwoman Jessica Sullivan said Monday night that a public hearing on the ordinance would be part of the Dec. 9 council meeting. However, an agenda released Tuesday only lists thanking Cole for his efforts and forwarding the result on to the council ordinance committee.

On Sept. 5, a standing-room-only crowd of nearly 120 people weighed in during a council workshop on the gun club issue. Although complaints about noise at the shooting range have been commonplace since the 1990s, when homes began to sprout up in Cross Hill, things took a more dramatic turn in 2009 when residents began to find bullets lodged in their homes. At least three complaints were filed. Police were never able to verify that any bullet came from the gun club and some of its 300-plus members have claimed the offending slugs were “planted” to drive public opinion against them.

More recently, local police have fielded complaints on Nov. 3 and Nov. 17 when shooting took place before noon on Sunday, in violation of club rules. In the earlier instance, the violator blamed the incident on forgetting to reset his watch from daylight-saving time the previous evening.

One difficulty regarding future council action will be the status of Councilor Jamie Wagner. Before his 2012 election, Wagner represented a Cross Hill resident in a dispute with the gun club, which he brought before the council in March of that year. Lack of progress after more than a year, he said, “compelled” him to seek intervention by the town. However, gun club president Mark Mayon called Wagner’s overture “laced with alarmist statements and untruths.” Wagner’s true goal, he said, was to “shut the club down.”

At the Sept. 5 workshop, the council voted 4-2 to ban Wagner from debate on the topic, based on the perception of a conflict of interest.

In a July 15 memo, prior to being hired to weigh in more directly, Cole noted that Maine law does not allow residents to bring a nuisance suit against a shooting range based on noise if they moved in after the site was established. Furthermore, he wrote, statutes prevent municipalities from acting to control or limit noise already occurring on a regular basis. However, Cole said the town could adopt “time, place and manner” restrictions on the club, provided any new ordinance is, “based on specific findings that it is required to enhance and promote the public’s safety, health and welfare.”

The proposed ordinance sets the acceptable noise level at 65 decibels 1,000 feet from the firing line, subject to state allowances for shooting ranges. It does not amend club hours, or require a licensing fee, although it does require the shooting range to reimburse the town for any engineering fees related to its applications.

A $3 million liability policy also is required.

On Monday, both Town Manager Michael McGovern and Sullivan, the incoming council chairwoman, declined comment on Cole’s ordinance proposal, because it had just been received that day. Mayon, the gun club’s president, did not return calls requesting comment before the Current’s Tuesday morning deadline.

The proposed ordinance largely relies on the National Rifle Association Range Source Book as the arbiter of operational standards, although it also calls upon the lead management guidelines of the Environmental Protection Agency.

Speaking on behalf of the Cross Hill neighborhood, resident Kathy Kline said at the September council workshop that there “was never a meeting of the minds” with the gun club over the past year on hiring third-party consultants.

She complained that the gun club used a consultant affiliated with the NRA – not a neutral source in the eyes of many local residents – and then refused to release the resulting report. Mayon said the club passed all NRA standards for shooting ranges, but admitted the results were being held for fear they could be used as a weapon by Kline’s side.

“Although we passed, there were some recommendations for improvement,” he said.

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