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By Kate Martin @Kate_SVHBURLINGTON — For more than 65 years, Kesselring Gun Shop has sold firearms to the hunters, collectors and protectors among us.But starting Oct. 1, the family-owned shop will sell firearms no more.Nobody will say why.Don Kesselring, reached at his shop by phone Wednesday, said he had made a deal with the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Part of the deal means not talking about why his business lost its license.A spokesman for the ATF also refused to provide details about Kesselring’s license.Was the license surrendered or revoked? Bill Perkins from the Seattle office of the ATF won’t say. A July 2 post by the shop on its Facebook page said the business is being forced to surrender its license.Don Kesselring said the business will continue to sell gun parts, clips, magazines and ammunition, while his brother, Keith, will sell firearms out of a pro shop at a shooting range in Burlington once it opens. Kesselring Gun Shop is also prevented from providing gunsmithing services.Law enforcement throughout Skagit County seemed surprised by the news.“I heard a rumor but I didn’t believe it,” said Anacortes Police Chief Bonnie Bowers. “Kesselrings has been there forever. It will be missed by all of us.”She said the shop gave discounts to members of law enforcement, and many officers have bought their off-duty weapons there.When Bowers started at the Anacortes Police Department, officers carried a 9 mm Beretta handgun.“We transitioned to .40-caliber Glock handguns. We bought 18 new guns — all from Kesselring,” Bowers said.Sgt. Mike Moore of the Mount Vernon Police Department said that like most police departments in the valley, Mount Vernon’s buys most of its firearms from the manufacturer. The city buys “some ammo” but not much, he said, from Kesselring Gun Shop.Doug Williams, a board member for the Custer Sportsmans Club, which has 2,500 members, said it will be hard to replace Kesselring Gun Shop as a local firearms dealer.“I’ve done business with them for two generations now, and it’s a huge loss to the community,” Williams said. “The other stores in the region will hopefully be able to pick up the slack and with any luck, Kesselrings will be reincarnated somehow.”The shop has until Oct. 1 to sell its inventory. According to its Facebook page, guns are priced 10 percent off through the end of July.- Reporter Kate Martin: 360-416-2145, kmartin@skagitpublishing.com, Twitter: @Kate_SVH, facebook.com/KateReports.
