LEESBURG – Leesburg Town Council denied a request to change a zoning variance Monday.
Jacob Riebe approached the council because he currently lives with his parents and wants to use his parents’ home to start a gunsmith/manufacturer/dealer business.
He said there are a lot of hoops to go through and he wanted to get approval from the town council and Area Plan Commission before applying for his federal firearms license (FFL) in order to save money in case his request was denied.
Riebe said he was planning on having his business open on Wednesdays from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Councilman Tom Moore asked Riebe if he had any experience repairing guns. Riebe said he only had experience fixing his own guns because to fix other people’s guns before he has his FFL is illegal. He also said he planned on selling guns online only at this point due to space issues.
Council members’ main point of contention with the request hinged on the fact the town joined the Area Plan Commission in December 2020.
Moore said the town has spent a lot of time trying to get into the APC. He said he knew why Riebe was in front of the council and that was because if the council approved the request, APC may also approve the change.
Councilman Mitch Rader said the council should be careful of approving zoning change requests so soon after joining APC.
Moore said he was very hesitant to agree to the request. He said he hesitancy was not about guns. He thought it was an honest request and gun repair is in huge demand. He said he admired Riebe’s entrepreneur spirit, but he wasn’t in favor of making changes to the area plan at this point.
In other business, the council:
• Approved the Leesburg Memorial Day Parade and Service at 10:30 a.m. May 29. Line-up will start at 10:15 a.m. downtown. A service will be at the cemetery following the parade.
• Heard three parking warnings were issued. There is no parking on town streets between 3 and 5 a.m.
• Heard the repair is complete for the storm drain on the southeast corner of Jefferson and Van Buren streets, which was developing a suck hole.
• Heard work will start April 17 for the west alley storm drain with Insight Pipe Contracting LLC.
• Heard weekly maintenance checks have been done at the lift station and a lot of the numbers are staying the same.
