NEW HAVEN – Outdoor enthusiasts feeling the squeeze of short winter days will soon have reason to celebrate.
Rack ‘n Reel Sporting Goods is adding an indoor archery range to its property at the junction of Routes 7 and 17 in New Haven.
The range has been part of the plan from the beginning, said Rack ‘n Reel co-owner and New Haven resident John Kipp, who bought the property in 2014.
“You’re sitting on the couch at five o’clock. It gets dark at 4:30 in the winter. Where do you go? What do you do?” Kipp said. There is an indoor archery range in St. Albans, he added, “but sometimes you just don’t feel like getting home from work and turning around and driving a couple of hours.”
The 2,800-square-foot building will accommodate target practice for roughly eight to ten archers at a time, making it possible to create leagues and host tournaments. 
Other things on tap for the new building: hunter safety courses, fly-tying classes, birthday parties and other entertainment, especially events that will help get more kids involved in outdoor sports, he said. “Get them off their cellphones and computers, and get them out in the woods,” Kipp said. “We’re open to suggestions.”
Assembly of the building, which is a do-it-yourself component-built system by AmeriBuilt Steel Structures, is scheduled to begin in early April. AmeriBuilt representative Michael Giorgio, who designed the building, said it would be “completely modern on the outside and completely old-school on the inside.”
Reach Christopher Ross at [email protected]