Council puts planned land purchase on hold indefinitely following opposition

Published 8:47 pm Monday, May 4, 2026

QUINCY — The Quincy City Council on Monday shot down a proposal that could have led to a new trap-shooting facility just north of the city.

Monday’s meeting was shifted from Quincy City Hall to the Oakley-Lindsay Center to in anticipation of a large crowd expected to address a plan that would have seen the City make a land purchase before requesting proposals for development of the property.

The idea was brought forward by a developer in the hopes of building a trap-shooting range on land immediately adjacent on the north side of the old Roller Country skating rink. The idea was to build a facility that could host tournament events for local schools and other organizations.

The proposal on Monday’s agenda would have been a first step, for the purchase of the property. While the plan was conceived with the shooting range in mind, city processes would have seen a request for proposals go out for additional development plans that could better serve the city.

After vocal opposition to the plan over several weeks, at the start of Monday’s meeting the council made an administrative change to the published agenda, moving the vote on the resolution that would approve the land purchase to the first item.

Ald. Mike Adkins, R-3, made a motion to table the resolution indefinitely, with the motion seconded by Ald. Eric Entrup, R-1. On a voice vote with only one vote in opposition, the motion was approved, effectively killing the plan.

While a tabled item, including resolutions and ordinances, can be brought back up with proper notification, a vote to table indefinitely typically signals the end of action for that item.

“The decision to table the item was made to refocus the original intent of the proposal,” Mayor Linda Moore said following the vote. “At this point, we believe it is in the best interest of the city to pause, regroup, and reassess. Our intent remains the same, to pursue smart, strategic, economic development opportunities that benefit the City of Quincy residents.”

Earlier in the day, the council held the annual wrap-up meeting to close out the fiscal year 2025-26, with reports submitted from various departments. One item that saw action taken was an approval of a grant for $10,000 to the organizers of Quincy’s Freedom Fest to help cover the cost for fireworks for this year’s Fourth of July celebration.

Over the past several years, Freedom Fest has been awarded grants through the city’s Bring Entertainment to Quincy, or BET on Q, program. Rules governing that program now restrict any organization from being approved for more than two grant awards. The grant approved early Monday evening is separate from the BET on Q program.

At the council’s regular meeting, the council approved just under $150,000 in annual software service contracts for the city’s technology systems. The contracts include firewall devices, Microsoft 365 applications, and the Barracuda Networks email security and archiving systems among others.