Berlin Planning Board fields informal pitch for indoor shooting range on Route 62 corner

BERLIN — December 9, 2025 — Berlin Planning Board hears informal pitch for indoor shooting range and gun shop at 339 Old Central Street. Jason Clark, owner of Custom Defense Solutions in Littleton, told the three-member board at its December 9 meeting that he has spent more than a year searching for a site to consolidate his retail firearms business and open a licensed indoor range of up to 14 lanes, targeting the commercially zoned corner lot at Routes 62 and Old Central Street. The board, comprising Chair Tom Sav, Timothy Wheeler, Jay Teach, and Carolyn McDonald, flagged significant dimensional constraints under zoning bylaw section 621.2, a 50-percent green-space requirement, and setback rules that previously blocked a car wash proposal on the same parcel in 2023. Members also confirmed that River Bridge's two-and-a-half parking spaces per thousand square feet of gross leasable area applies uniformly to all commercial uses in the village overlay district. Clark, who said he is also vice president of Harvard Sportsman's Club and plans to offer free LTC classes and youth safety programs to Berlin residents, was directed to retain an architect and return with concrete building plans before any Zoning Board of Appeals filing.