Unalaska, AK – The Aleutian Rod and Gun Club is asking for $6,500 from the city to improve its local shooting range.

Club Secretary Dan Masoni said the money would go toward cleaning up the plentiful garbage in the area, and extending the berms that were built on the site about a decade ago for safety. He said they also hope to set up a permanent shotgun range on the site, by building a shelter for a target thrower, several firing points and other improvements.

"There are a lot of shotguns in town, but there's currently no real way to shoot clay birds without interfering with what's going on at the pistol range, or what's going on at the rifle range," he said.

Masoni said that considering Unalaska's hunting options, which are mostly limited to upland birds and waterfowl, a better shotgun range would be a big plus for the local shooting community.

"Shotgun sports are really much more available in this area because of the type of animals on the island," he said. "If one wants to hunt the kind of animal that a high-powered rifle would bring down, one has to leave Unalaska Island, unfortunately."

The Aleutian Rod and Gun Club has maintained the shooting range for the past decade and a half in what was a gravel quarry owned by the Ounalashka Corporation, which now leases the property to the club for a dollar a year. Only club members have keys to the gate across the road leading to the range, but Masoni said that non-members are welcome to come in on foot to use the facility.