Elite Shooting Sports Gun Range Purchased By Prince William County Police

MANASSAS, VA — Prince William County is purchasing the Elite Shooting Sports gun range in Manassas for $22 million, county officials said on Tuesday. The police department will use the range for training purposes.

The current owner of the facility plans to retire and agreed to sell the building to the county, the police department said.

Officials within the police department believe the new facility is a necessary upgrade over their current training facility in Nokesville. The current facility, Pennington Range at the county's public safety training center, was built in 1995. At that time, the police department employed about 300 officers.

The Prince William County Police Department has doubled its numbers since the facility's construction.

"The 20,000 square foot facility is in need of significant expansion and renovations to meet the demands of a growing county and police department," the police department said in a news release. "With only one training bay and 12 lanes capable of training within 50 yards, the range is inefficient in providing officers with the necessary skills, space, and tools needed in modern policing."

Elite Shooting Sports opened in 2014 with four bays and 42 shooting lanes. County officials said they would expand the indoor facility to 65,000 feet for "additional training and growth."

"The facility offers areas for advanced simulation training needed for continued skills development," the police department said. "With the facility already constructed, minimal alterations would be needed."

Police department officials estimated that it would have cost upwards of $28 million to construct a new training facility.

Peter Newsham is the chief of the Prince William County Police Department.

"This facility offers our officers the training needed in today’s environment without undue cost and delays experienced with a complete new build,” Newsham said on Tuesday. “Adequately training officers has never been more important than it is now. This facility is a win-win for the police department and the community we serve.”

Though the purchase contract has already been signed, police department officials have not said when training would begin at the facility, or when Elite Shooting Sports would close to the public.