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An Owings Mills shooting range, training facility and entertainment complex is growing by a third with a new 22,000-square-foot expansion.
Guntry at 10705 Red Run Blvd. opened the first portion of the several million dollar renovations on May 1: a new training facility that will host private instruction, group classes, workshops and events ranging from mixed martial arts to yoga.
The next steps in the project will add 10 more 25-yard shooting lanes for law enforcement, golf and buck hunting simulators and an archery facility. Guntry owner Brian Wolf said he expects the work to be done by the end of 2024.
“There are a lot of shooters out there who don’t golf," Wolf said. "We want to be a place where you can get that feeling without joining a country club."
Merritt Properties owns the building and is leading the expansion work for Guntry. Wolf declined to disclose the full price tag or how he is financing the work but said it will cost “several million dollars” and that Guntry has “done very well” in recent years.
Guntry offers facility memberships and also hosts events and parties. Wolf and Guntry’s Chief Marketing Officer Karen Becker said they’ve had weddings, bar and bat mitzvahs, birthday and bachelor parties of anywhere from 10 to 120 people. The facility’s restaurant with two executive chefs, VIP area and cigar lounge, training sessions and group classes have drawn customers from eight to 80 years old, they added.
“There are a lot of gun ranges around, but we’re unique because we’re open to the public, we take memberships, and the idea behind this was to create a relaxed atmosphere,” Becker said.
Becker and Wolf said that the expansion, planned with their co-owners Richard Landsman and Mark Gogol, reflects both Guntry’s welcoming space and the public’s desire for safety. Guntry opened just six weeks before the Covid-19 pandemic swept the country, and the range was able to reopen because it was a training site for law enforcement agencies and private security contractors, Wolf said.
“In light of the world we’re in, starting with Covid, our buzzwords are ‘safety, education and training.’ We opened up and the world went to hell, so people wanted to come learn to protect themselves in a safe manner,” Becker said.
Wolf, who started a security company in 2008 and spent almost 27 years with the Baltimore County Police Department, said changes in gun laws have also drawn new customers to Guntry. A U.S. Supreme Court’s decision last year loosened the legal proof of necessity to carry a concealed weapon, impacting laws in New York and Maryland, among other states. Wolf said his facility’s “wear and carry” class has been the “hot and heavy” offering since then.
The largest portion of the renovations are two planned archery ranges, one with traditional paper target shooting and the other a simulated range with virtual experiences. Both ranges will have three-dimensional targets in the form of “life-size animal targets” Wolf said.
There will also be a retail portion of the archery center, with an equipment pro shop and bow rental and repair services, which Guntry already offers for firearms.
Guntry has a team of roughly 60 employees, who Wolf and Becker credit with keeping customers coming back. The owners plan to hire more but have not set a timeline or determined how many.