Construction on a new firing range in Campbell County could begin in about year — a project that has been in the works for nine years.

The Campbell County Board of Supervisors unanimously approved staff to begin the necessary steps to expand the existing firing range on Rockford School Road near Hurt at Tuesday’s meeting. The range would be located on 162 acres owned by the Town of Altavista.

The next steps will be to see if there are any interested regional partners and return the proposal to the board with better cost estimates in three to six months. A special use permit also is required because the site is expanding by more than 50 percent.

This site was selected because it met the sheriff’s needs, it was the most isolated option and it could be developed the quickest. It was also the cheapest option.

At Tuesday’s meeting, Sheriff Steve Hutcherson said his department has had difficulties meeting training requirements because of limited availability at the area ranges they are using, adding he also was forced to pull staff so everyone could get their training in during the couple of weeks allotted to Campbell.