GREENWOOD VILLAGE, Colo. — For the last 50 years, Sandy Carson and her family have called Greenwood Village home. But for her, that peace was recently shattered.
“Recently, I was beginning to see myself somewhere else because... I discovered there was a gun business so close to me,” Carson said, adding that she's upset that the sales are happening in the neighborhood instead of a store.
That business is Tomcat Tactical Firearms.
“I have had many sleepless nights. I am upset that nothing has been done about it up to this point, that we have been told (the business) is legal,” Carson said.
A few hundred feet away, owner of the store, Jason Pratt, said everything he does legal and he welcomes neighbors who are concerned.
“We’ve been here — we’re coming up on five years. I would like them to come by and see how I operate and see the discretion,” Pratt said.
Pratt said the recent petition to close down the store connected to his home is unfounded since he is fully licensed and following all laws to operate.
“One of the neighbors called the police and they came and paid me a visit and I was actually very thankful for that. They thought I was selling firearms unlawfully and so when they asked me, 'Do you sell firearms?' and I said yes and that kind of took them back and I said, 'I am a FFL (Federal Firearms License)' and they said, 'OK, we support what you do, everything you’re doing here is lawful,'” said Pratt.
But for Carson and many others, Pratt’s business brings potential dangers.
“My house is my haven. It isn’t anymore and it is very upsetting,” said Carson.
Carson and the hundreds who have already signed the petition say the debate is not about gun ownership, rather the sale of them in a residential area.
“If he wishes to have such a business he can be in a commercial setting,” said Carson.
Pratt said that is a change he is not ready to make.
“That would require me to have a tremendous amount of time and money and grow the business beyond what I want,” Pratt said.
Because of a new bill passed by Gov. Jared Polis last year, local elected officials have the power to keep guns out of certain places and regulate gun dealers. That means the future of Tomcat Tactical could be in the hands of Greenwood Village City Council.
“It is said that the first person to bring this case seems right until another person examines him. So this gives me an opportunity to shed light about misinformation that is being spread about my store,” Pratt said.