JUST FOR FUN—A recent muncipal code revision has reclassified paintball and airsoft guns so that they are no longer lumped with handguns. As soon as a safe environment for play is developed, airsoft and paintball aficionados can get their game on in Simi Valley.

The nonlethal guns are no longer lumped with handguns under the weapons section of the city’s municipal code. At its Nov. 16 meeting, the City Council approved revisions to the code to allow the use of airsoft and paintball guns for target practice and gaming.

Simi resident Gregg Brune thanked the mayor and the council for their “vision” in addressing the issue.

“Local enthusiasts need to travel considerable distances to find the facilities to play this sport. . . . The proposed ordinance amendment is not only welcome but also required in order for paintball enthusiasts to have a facility to participate in,” Brune said before the council took its vote.

The city’s municipal code defines a firearm as any device from which a projectile is discharged by force, which included airsoft and paintball guns.

The code further states that firearms can only be discharged at shooting ranges, which preclude airsoft and paintball gaming since targeting other players is involved.

Due to the unanimous approval of the City Council, the recreational guns are now exempt from these restrictions.

Douglas Mitchell of True Edge, a Simi store that sells airsoft guns and products, said amending the code was necessary to allow for the development of safe and legal places for gamers to play within the city.

“By allowing this to go through, it would allow a controlled environment . . . where we could have safe games, safe activities, to allow (players) to have fun,” Mitchell said.

Airsoft and paintball gaming weren’t envisioned when the city’s regulations for firearms were written nearly 30 years ago. Since that time, both activities have become popular entertainment that, for the most part, is practiced in a safe manner at authorized facilities.

Under the new ordinance, airsoft and paintball guns are defined as any gun, rifle or pistol that is powered by compressed gas, spring-action or an electronically powered gearbox and discharges plastic pellets or a plastic ball of paint that is designed to break upon impact.

The law says these types of guns will now be allowed only within an enclosed building for target practice and gaming under adult supervision.

The rewritten code also allows for the establishment of bow-andarrow target practice facilities.

The council decided that a bow-and-arrow target range may be established without the council’s approval in order to simplify the review process for youth organizations, such as summer camps, that offer bow-and-arrow activities.

However, airsoft and paintball facilities as well as bow-and-arrow ranges would require a conditional use permit as approved by the planning commission.