Ontario County outdoor firing range reopens with $1.2 million upgrade

The Ontario County outdoor firing range upgrade, costing $1.2 million, has been completed.

Members of the Ontario County Board of Supervisors, Ontario County Sheriff David Cirencione, New York state Sen. Pamela Helming and other local elected officials gathered on July 11 for a ribbon-cutting.

County Administrator Christopher DeBolt said the range, originally constructed in the early 1970s, received facility upgrades to enhance its safety and effectiveness.

Ontario County Public Works Commissioner Bill Wright stated that the upgrades involve expanding the range's size by making it deeper, wider, longer, taller and more environmentally friendly.

Besides his own department, Cirencione uses the range as the primary training site for the FBI, the Canandaigua and Finger Lakes Community College police departments, the Yates County Sheriff’s Office, the Department of Environmental Conservation, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms, the Department of Veterans Affairs and others.

"This doesn't just serve us; you're talking hundreds of officers across the Finger Lakes," Cirencione said.

Cirencione noted that there have been five officer-involved shootings in the past 18 months, a number he considers above average. He stated that the range upgrades and additional space will facilitate more dynamic training for the officers who use it.

"What happens here is extremely crucial for the protection of our officers, but also the citizens that they protect in our community," Cirencione said.

The $1.2 million project was funded by a $250,000 grant secured by Helming through the Dormitory Authority of the State of New York and $950,000 from the Ontario County Board of Supervisors' capital improvement project funding.

"My priority was to identify projects that would directly support law enforcement and our first responders," Helming said. "Our men and women in blue and all of our first responders deserve the best training and preparation possible."

The facility is expected to be open this week.

— Madison Scott is a journalist with the Democrat and Chronicle who edited our Weld Street Project and also did reporting for it. She has an interest in how the system helps or doesn't help families with missing loved ones . She can be reached at MDScott@gannett.com .

This article originally appeared on Rochester Democrat and Chronicle: Ontario County outdoor firing range reopens with $1.2 million upgrade