The website for McCandless Crossing advertises four basic activities for patrons at the still-developing retail complex: Shop. Play. Dine. Stay.
This spring, “shoot” can be added to that list because the North Hills’ first indoor shooting range now is under construction, behind Dick’s Sporting Goods.
Target practice will be just one of the functions of INPAX Academy of Personal Protection, according to owner Sam Rosenberg. His mission, said the former Marine and celebrity body guard, is to “empower people to be able to protect themselves.”
Mr. Rosenberg said he believes when citizens are capable of protecting themselves, it makes for a safer community. But that doesn’t necessarily mean they have to be armed.
“The gun range is just one part of our training center,” said Mr. Rosenberg, who added that guns aren’t for everyone – but INPAX is. “INPAX is a training facility, and there are services we can provide in the sphere of self-defense that have nothing to do with firearms. We teach a full-spectrum approach.”
Currently operating only his personal protection training in retail space next to First Watch on Covenant Avenue in McCandless, Mr. Rosenberg said the future 28,000-square-foot facility will feature far more than a state-of-the-art shooting range.
Community-based personal security training classes, extensive firearms courses, and a variety of events and programs will be offered as part of Mr. Rosenberg’s mission to teach people how to assess threatening situations, deter threats and ultimately defend themselves if necessary.
“In the absence of training, most people go into a profound paralysis state, because they have a misconception of helplessness,” Mr. Rosenberg said. “We systematically show people that you are never helpless as long as you can control your mind.
“I’ve been protecting people and organizations for more than 20 years,” said Mr. Rosenberg, who exited the Marines in 1996 to enter the “close protection” world. He has guarded celebrities including Tom Cruise, Lucy Liu, and Warren Buffet and also kept high-ranking members of the Israeli government safe, including Benjamin Netanyahu (before he became prime minister).
In 2003, he decided to teach ordinary people how to navigate an increasingly dangerous world.
“I began INPAX with the intent to teach people how to recognize danger and protect themselves, as well as how bad guys think and select their targets and why,” he said. Since then, Mr. Rosenberg, a father of two, has been working with schools, including North Allegheny School District, teaching how to prevent dangerous situations and understand what kind of people could commit mass homicide; as well as what the indicators are that someone is ready to snap.
“I also teach staff members what to do if they come face-to-face with an intruder.”
Other clients include executives who travel abroad, law enforcement agencies, and people who need to learn defensive tactics and firearms skills.
“We have a course designed for college-age women which teaches them how to recognize ‘persuasion predators’ who use their charm and persuasive ability to create opportunities to victimize people,” Mr. Rosenberg said.
When he approached the McCandless zoning and planning board with the business plans for INPAX, Town manager Tobias Cordek recalled that Mr. Rosenberg “wanted people to understand what he was doing there.”
“Our planning commission did two reviews of the building, and the developer and the owner attended at least one of them, with the owner giving us a detailed presentation,” said Mr. Cordek, who pointed out INPAX will be located in an office building at the corner of Babcock and Providence boulevards. “One of the uses permitted in the traditional neighborhood district is a training facility, which is what INPAX is.”
The indoor gun range also is a permitted use, Mr. Cordek said. “We have been advised by legal counsel that municipalities are prohibited from regulating gun ranges.”
Mr. Rosenberg gave a detailed presentation to McCandless council in March and received unanimous approval. There were discussions about the gun range during at least two other council meetings. The community’s reaction was mixed.
Some residents expressed concern that the indoor gun range will be situated in an extremely busy location, while others feared noise would be a problem.
Developer Kevin Dougherty said he has been working with Mr. Rosenberg on the gun range project for the past four years. “We talked a long time about whether it would provide a service that would be valuable to us,” he said. “I became comfortable after talking with a lot of different people about the type of company they are, who their clients are, and because they’re actually a teaching academy, that’s where I see the value.”
Mr. Dougherty said the sound of gunfire heard will not be heard outside of the range, which will be completely contained to eliminate any chance of a stray bullet escaping into the parking lot. “There’s an outdoor shooting range just two miles away, and sometimes you can hear it from this area,” he said.
Mr. Cordek said Mr.Rosenberg is working with an environmental consultant who specializes in these types of facilities and plans are to install an air filtering process that will remove lead contaminants from the range. “It’s not for us to regulate, but the steps INPAX is taking to make this a safe environment are impressive,” he said.
“Sam works with approximately a dozen school districts in this area and has been in business up in Wexford for the past decade at least. He’s already been a member of the community long before McCandless Crossing was built,” Mr. Dougherty said.
“There are 132 police forces inside Allegheny County that are continually getting certified, recertified and retrained, and I love the thought that they will be coming to our area and be present at any given moment.”
Jill Cueni-Cohen, freelance writer: suburbanliving@post-gazette.com.
First Published: November 9, 2017, 4:46 p.m.
