Eureka Gun Shop Adding Indoor Firing Range

Tier One Weapons System in Eureka is looking to expand its business by building a state-of-the-art shooting range in the space formerly occupied by Save-a-Lot.

The gun shop and outdoor store is owned by Sam Andrews, a long-time resident of the area, and also manufactures rifles and custom firearms.

“We are a small business looking to grow into a mid-sized business,” Andrews told the Eureka City Council during a meeting June 4.

The council approved Andrews’ petition for the 25-yard range 7-0, noting that it had also been recommended and thoroughly vetted by the city’s planning and zoning commission.

Chief among their concerns was the noise that the facility might make. It would be located at 225 Thresher Drive as part of a shopping center also housing a Rockwood Bank branch.

Andrews said he would be taking several extra precautions to help reduce the range’s noise and improve safety. The range will be backstopped by two layers, what Andrews called a “range wall” and the building’s masonry wall.

“We don’t want any sound going to the outside, so we are going to build an air-tight bulb with its own air circulatory system to mitigate the sound,” he said. “You won’t hear things being fired.”

Ricochet-proof material will also be used in the floor and in the ceiling, a step Andrews said is not typically at most ranges. The type of guns that may be fired will be limited mostly to handguns and very small carbines.

“It will allow people to try a pistol before they but it,” he said. “See what fits your hands better, see what is easier for you to control.”

As a 20-year veteran trainer of law enforcement and special operations soldiers, Andrews said providing the best concealed carry instruction will also be one of his goals.

Andrews is currently aiming to have the range open by late November.