While instructor Andy Montoya was teaching a concealed carry course at the city’s Shooting Range Park, one of his students fainted — but due to the area’s lack of cell service, Montoya said had he needed emergency services he would have had to race to the range’s office to call 911 from a landline.
“We have no communication availability out in the shooting range berms and having to run up to the office to use the landline, seconds count when life matters and that’s a big deal for us,” said Montoya, co-owner and lead instructor of Practical Defense Training, LLC.
The classrooms at the city-owned and run shooting range now have internet access but Montoya has experienced other issues throughout his 10 years teaching there — and he is not the only one.
Montoya and other instructors who pay fees in order to teach at the shooting range attended the last City Council meeting to share their concerns with councilors about the “unsanitary conditions” of the facilities.
Instructors described classrooms at the shooting range with overflowing trash cans, no running water or air conditioning and floors dirtied with mouse droppings and dead bugs. One instructor said there is a portable toilet on site but it is not compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).
Montoya said the facilities are “disgusting” and have worsened in the last few years. He said as someone who has worked on air conditioning systems, the classrooms’ air conditioners are “not up to par.”
To rent a classroom for a day, Montoya pays $35 and an additional $6 per person, which totals about $200 for a weekend course with multiple students.
“That represents our business,” Montoya said. “It really doesn’t matter the cost, if we’re going to rent a facility, we expect a quality facility. I’m not expecting top notch, gold standard, but we do expect a level of quality.”
Albuquerque Police Department (APD) has a classroom at the shooting range and Montoya and the other instructors said they were told by shooting range staff that APD officers sometimes leave classrooms messy.
Rebecca Atkins, a spokesperson for APD, told City Desk ABQ the department does have a building at the shooting range and it is “kept tidy and maintained by APD staff.” Atkins said APD “seldom uses” the other classroom and only “when extra space is needed and cleans up after any use.”
Explaining the reason for dusty and dirty conditions, Parks and Recreation Director David Simon said the shooting range is far out in the mesa with isolated systems and infrastructure constructed a long time ago. He said the department wants the public to have clean and safe facilities but there is no custodial staff for the shooting range.
“We plan to look at improving the custodial care for the classroom building, but there’s a lot of blowing dust out there,” Simon said. “There are animals, and the buildings are metal buildings so they are not as airtight as the brick-and-mortar building. Dirt and other things can get into a building that way, easier.”
The Parks and Recreation Department is looking at improving public service and care for the facilities and allocating funding to upgrade two of the largest buildings, which Simon said are “the most important buildings for public use and also for our law enforcement.”
Simon said the department is still negotiating with a contractor on the final amount but he expects the project to cost $1 million.
The water system and restrooms are temporarily out of service because of a problem with the septic field and the water pump, but both services are being diagnosed and repaired, according to Simon. He said they will also try to add an ADA-compliant restroom during this temporary disruption.
“We’re excited to start the project, and I think it will benefit everybody at the Shooting Range Park,” Simon said. “The CCW [concealed carry weapons] instructors are only one user group at the park. They are an important constituency, but we really want the park to be available and be an excellent resource for everyone.”
Editor’s note: This story has been updated to clarify that Andy Montoya was worried about calling 911 and didn’t actually need to call for emergency services.