A real estate developer shelved plans to build a gun store in the Chicago suburb of Mundelein, citing mass shootings in nearby Highland Park and in Uvalde, Texas.
Wilmette’s Terraco Real Estate dropped plans to build a second store for Maxon Shooter’s Supplies on vacant land at 320 Townline Road, just west of a Salvation Army store and donation center, the Daily Herald reported. The developer scrapped its plans after the shootings at an Indepence Day parade in Highland Park that killed seven and an attack at an Uvalde elementary school that left 21 dead.
“After the Uvalde tragedy, it became quite clear that we would not proceed forward,” Terraco President Scott Gendell told the outlet in an email. The shooting in Highland Park “simply reinforces our decision,” he said.
Maxon’s owner Dan Eldridge unveiled plans for the store in May, two weeks before the Texas shooting, which also severely wounded 17 people. Mundelein Mayor Steve Lentz and other city officials had said they didn’t take any formal action to support the plan. A separate planned gun store and range in the town failed five years ago.
Opposition to the store reached a peak last week, after a 21-year-old gunman opened fire at the Highland Park parade, in which dozens were injured. Lentz, who announced the news on the village’s Facebook page, said he and the city’s trustees had received dozens of emails opposing the project, especially after last week’s shooting.
“Emotions on the issue are very high right now, and I think there is a sense of relief that this project is off the table,” Lentz told the outlet. “We were headed for some very long and emotional meetings.”
Eldridge said he and his team are disappointed they had to scrap the plans. “(We) will focus our future efforts on communities in which we are wanted,” he said.
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