Edmonton Police Service seeks new $44M gun range

The Edmonton Police Service said it is in need of new firearms training facilities, saying the existing range was built 20 years ago and does not account for the growth of the city and its police force.

Inspector Devin Laforce with the EPS Professional Development Branch said the new facilities are critical for a number of reasons, the first of which is the current facility that doesn’t allow for growth in capacity.

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While the current facility allows for the annual, mandatory training that officers must undergo to carry a firearm, Laforce said it does not permit for additional, ongoing training.

“The second critical reason surrounds training for the carbine. We currently do not have facilities that can accommodate longer range marksmanship,” he said.

“The third large change has to do with the changing dynamics that are needed for firearms training. We don’t have a facility that easily accommodates modern movement while shooting, team scenarios, and wider shooting angles. This new range will satisfy these gaps in our existing training.”

Tweet This Click to share quote on Twitter: "The third large change has to do with the changing dynamics that are needed for firearms training. We don't have a facility that easily accommodates modern movement while shooting, team scenarios, and wider shooting angles. This new range will satisfy these gaps in our existing training."

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A request for pre-qualification, issued by the City of Edmonton, for the prime consulting services for the firearms facilities outlines a new indoor firearms facility in northwest Edmonton and an addition to the existing outdoor range at Constable William Nixon Memorial Training Centre.

The estimated construction cost of the new facility is $44,500,000 while the addition comes in at $1,500,000.

The document states the new facility will consist of “three indoor ranges, a dynamic live fire house for scenario based training, operational and facility support spaces” while the addition will include “a stand alone outdoor range consisting of four lanes of 100 metres for carbine and rifle training.”

“This will also allow us to better integrate training with other law enforcement agencies and implement newer training that we do not currently have range availability to initiate,” Laforce said.

Tweet This Click to share quote on Twitter: "This will also allow us to better integrate training with other law enforcement agencies and implement newer training that we do not currently have range availability to initiate," Laforce said.

The city document states the timeline for the new firearms facilities is “unknown at this time and subject to funding approval.”