In April, Lower Merion Township limited gun businesses to only certain areas of the township away from mostly residential areas. Now the owner of Shot Tec in Bala Cynwyd and a Pennsylvania PAC are challenging the new ordinance in court, writes Emily Rizzo for WHYY.

The township’s gun laws are now stricter than the state’s, which under Pennsylvania’s preemption statute is not allowed.

Grant Schmidt is the owner of Shot Tec, which is the only commercial firearms business in Lower Merion Township. Gun owners can order guns and whatever else they need online and come pick up their orders at Shot Tec. Because the guns aren’t sold on the premise, Schmidt said that Shot Tec is technically not a gun shop.

Schmidt told WHYY, “What the township did is they made it less accessible for people to access their rights and for people to access things like gunsmithing and et cetera.”

Township Commissioner Mike McKeon said he feels that the ordinance will hold up in court because it is a zoning law.

He said that while it is not clear the ordinance will reduce gun violence, the township is trying to make everyone feel safer.

Read more about the legal challenge at WHYY.

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