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Adirondack Park Agency

Project Public Hearings (P2021-0276)

A project hearing may be held pursuant to the Board's decision to develop a record needed to resolve substantive and significant issues relating to any findings or determinations the Agency is required to make pursuant to applicable law. Such hearings provide the opportunity for parties to present evidence before an impartial and independent hearing officer, in a forum open to the public. Exhibits, testimony and written submissions from parties to the hearing will be made publicly availbel to members of the public who are not parties to the hearing.

For more information on the hearing process please see Guide to Project Hearings.

Updated November 20, 2025

At the Adirondack Park Agency's November meeting, the Board determined to hold a hearing for a proposed howitzer testing range int he Town of Lewis (P2021-0276). The Agency Board ordered this matter to public hearing and identified issues relevant to the Board's responsibility to make findings and determinations under the APA Act.

Scheduled Dates, pulblic notices, and other relevent information on the hearing will be posted below.

Project Description: A portable 155mm howitzer barrel assembly is proposed to be placed on a 100-foot by 100-foot crushed gravel pad and test-fired on Lot 31. Each test would fire a steel projectile into a target area. No explosive warheads are proposed to bused. The howitzer assembly is proposed to be fired 30 times per year on weekdays between the hours of 10am and 4pm. The applicant proposes to place a kinetic energy-absorbing system (soft catch system) at the eastern side of the range to catch projectiles fired. The soft catch system would consist of an 8-foot by 8-foot by 40-foot long metal shipping container or similar filled container with sand and other material to stop the projectiles.

Project Location - Town of Lewis, Essex County

Press Releases:

APA Board Votes to Hold Adjudicatory Hearing for Proposed Howitzer Testing Range  

P2021-0276 - Michael Hopmeier, Unconventional Concepts:

  1. Final Project Order
  2. Public Comments
  3. Applicant Response to Public Comments
  4. Recording of November 13, 2025 Board Meeting
  5. Recording of November 14, 2025 Board Meeting

For further details on this project please refer to the FOIL Records Access Center

Hearing Schedule - TBD