City provides update on temporary closure of Koko Head Shooting Complex

Current schedule: archery range reopening March 2023, pistol & rifle ranges in April 2023

News Release from Honolulu Department of Parks and Recreation, Feb 15, 2023 

O‘AHU – Renovations, repairs, and upgrades to the Koko Head Shooting Complex are progressing as an overhaul of the facilities and operations at O‘ahu’s only public shooting range continues. Under the current schedule the archery range will reopen in March 2023, with the public pistol and rifle ranges anticipated to reopen in April 2023.

Beginning this week, heavy machinery operators with the Honolulu Department of Parks and Recreation (DPR) will begin the berm/backstop renovation project; placing 3,000 cubic yards of dirt along the pistol and rifle ranges.

To expedite this work, DPR crews will be working extended day shifts, six-days a week. Immediate work that is additionally being scheduled at the shooting complex includes:

• Roofing
• Painting
• Removal of damaged portions of the wall separating the pistol & rifle range
• Basic landscaping

Prior to this project, DPR staff conducted deep cleaning along the firing lines, and carpentry work on the eyebrows overhanging the shooting galleries. Environmental air monitoring was conducted during this work, with test results showing no lead detected in any of the air samples collected. Additional monitoring will be conducted during the berm/backstop renovation project.

“We are very much looking forward to allowing the public back into this unique shooting facility, and greatly thank the community for their patience during its closure,” said Laura H. Thielen, DPR Director. “Because of the issues we encountered when the facility was closed, shooters will notice some significant changes to how the ranges will look and operate. Changes such as limiting where food and drinks can be consumed, requiring the pistol and rifle range to operate as one firing line (due to the damaged wall), and the overall look of the improved facilities. Planning ahead, we hope to make range improvements while maintaining some semblance of public shooting access.”

Last December, City staff met with the firearm range consultant Kramer One to discuss the physical and operational improvements needed to maintain safe operations at the shooting complex. In addition to the above-mentioned work, supplemental actions being pursued as a result of that visit include (but are not limited to):

• Installation of interior & perimeter signage

Updating operational procedures, such as:

• Additional staff training and health screening
• Standardizing recycling of spent bullet casings
• Regular scheduling for daily, weekly, and annual cleaning
• Reconstruction of wall separating the pistol & rifle range

The majority of this work is scheduled for the public pistol and rifle ranges operated by DPR, enabling the City to reopen this facility to the public. Discussions concerning additional repairs to the complex facilities utilized by other agencies are ongoing, with timelines on when those ranges will reopen currently uncertain.

The entire Koko Head Shooting Complex was closed on Sept. 16, 2022 after the City received notice that many of the complex employees received blood test results indicating elevated levels of lead. These test results indicated that the lead levels were well below the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) and medically established levels of concern. Although the levels did not pose an immediate health risk to the staff, they were relocated out of an abundance of caution.

All range staff remain under OSHA and medically established levels of concern and may return to work at Koko Head Shooting Complex.

We greatly appreciate the continued patience and understanding of the firearms community concerning the closure of this popular shooting facility. Please visit the complex’s official website for additional information and updates about the complex and its operations: bit.ly/kokoheadrange

If you need an auxiliary aid/service, other accommodations due to a disability, or an interpreter for a language other than English in reference to this announcement, please contact the Honolulu Department of Parks and Recreation at (808) 768-3003 on weekdays from 7:45 a.m. until 4:30 p.m. or email parks@honolulu.gov

—PAU—