State-of-the-art regional small-arms facility represents unique partnership
A view looking west at the area along State Route 902 where the county will be constructing its Spokane Regional Indoor Small Arms Range.
This rendering is taken from a report produced in 2019 showing a "conceptual" rendering of the indoor firing range and adjoining training center planned for the West Plains along State Route 902, along with a map showing its location (above). An updated rendering will be available once the design architect has completed the design work. The county hopes to have a firm selected by the end of March.
SPOKANE - Members of the Spokane County Sheriff's Office, the U.S. Air Force and Spokane County will partner in building and operating a new Spokane Regional Indoor Small Arms Range. The deal was announced at a March 15 press conference at Northern Quest Casino and Resort.
The facility will be built along the south side of State Route 902 near its intersection with Craig Road just East of a current Spokane County satellite shop facility.
The agreement is the first of its kind between the Air Force and a local government to jointly utilize facilities to benefit a military installation and a local government. It eliminates building duplicate facilities for each entity and saves taxpayers money.
With its location just minutes from Fairchild Air Force Base, this first-of-its-kind facility will provide a venue primarily for Air Force and Sheriff's Office instructors to train airmen and deputies simultaneously.
"One of my most important goals for the Sheriff's Office is to provide the highest level of training to our staff," Sheriff Ozzie Knezovich said in a statement. "This is the first agreement of its kind for the U.S. military and will be a flagship facility that will provide unique training opportunities for law enforcement and Air Force personnel," he added.
This indoor firing range will consist of 21 lanes, 50 meters in length and will include classrooms, offices and an armory on site. The flagship facility will provide facilities and features that will enhance all service branch training capabilities and skill sets.
"We here at Fairchild are thrilled for the opportunity to further our great relationship with our Spokane partners," 92nd Air Refueling Wing commander Col. Cassius T. Bentley said. "It gives us a chance to best utilize limited resources in order to provide a capability that both Spokane County and the Air Force mission needs."
The range will be housed fully indoors with adjustable lighting to enable daylight, dusk or nighttime conditions. It can simulate multiple potential environments and will be able to accommodate vehicles inside the facility to further enhance training. The facility will be fully owned by Spokane County with Fairchild and the Sheriff's Office being the primary tenants.
According to information provided by Spokane County, the total cost of the project is estimated at $36.6 million, not including interest. Of that amount, $19,630,883 is the estimated cost for "Phase I" consisting of the indoor firing range and the associated classrooms, offices, armory, restrooms/locker rooms, etc. The remaining amount is for the adjoining "Phase II" for a law enforcement training center consisting of classrooms, offices, meeting rooms and storage space.
Completion is anticipated to be Sept. 1, 2022, with move-in for the Air Force completed by Oct. 1, 2022. The project is expected to be awarded to a general contractor early in the summer of 2021 with construction commencing as soon as possible afterwards.
Paul Delaney is a retired former Free Press Publishing reporter and can be reached at [email protected].
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