Announced in 2019?
https://www.sltrib.com/news/2019/04/02/lds-church-planning-new/

LDS Church planning a new training center in Salt Lake City for its guards, complete with two firing ranges

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints plans to build a new training center for its in-house security forces in an otherwise unremarkable church storehouse, complete with two shooting ranges and facilities for teaching about defensive tactics and the use of force.

Tentatively called the Church Security Department Training Center, the 67,600-square-foot facility would be remodeled from part of an existing bishops’ storehouse at 390 S. 5200 West in Salt Lake City, according to Feb. 8 architectural drawings leaked online and obtained by The Salt Lake Tribune.

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One large hall and at least 10 smaller adjoining rooms are labeled for use in “force on force training,” plans indicate. Another large room would be used for “defensive tactics and physical training.” One area would feature a “use of force simulator,” according to blueprints.

Two shooting ranges — one 35 yards in length, the other 100 yards long, presumably for handguns and rifles, respectively — would occupy most of the new center’s north end, plans show. Designs call for 12 firing lanes on each range, along with ballistic ceilings, bullet traps and a complex system of suspended baffles to dampen noise.

I was downtown when Salt Lake got hit by a tornado. I was walking around to see the damage. When I walked by Temple Square the gates were closed. Church Security were everywhere. Some were holding AR15 or M16 carbines. Obviously following some security protocol but it was the first time I saw the built in paranoia of the church. They looked ridiculous. It’s a tornado and nobody is trying to invade your compound.

Just across the street all the workers building the conference center were had gathered and were glad nobody was hurt. A crane had collapsed. One guy laughed and said the operator is ok but he had to change his pants.

The church really is a paranoid organization. It’s increasing its training in deadly force because it’s not well liked and some church poverty has been vandalized.

I have to wonder about the legality of it as well. There are rules of engagement for our soldiers and police. For an armed civilian? -- not sure about that.

And I agree with you, during a disaster, you would imagine that the *first* priority of a church would be to help, not to empty out the armory.

Church security is corporate security. Many people have armed body guards and it’s legal. Of course laws differ place to place and what might be legal in one area might not be in another.

It was just strange to see church security showing they were heavily armed after a natural disaster. They were basically sending the message of don’t use this disaster to try anything.

It’s a sign of paranoia. The church is a very paranoid organization.

My experience is that cops are cops, and they looooove to play guns. They haul out the so-called "long guns" whenever they can.

I don't know if you remember, but the church once had local police monitoring the activity of people on the church's naughty list. It may not be as bad today as it was a couple of decades ago, but the church has a lot of cooperation with and control over the police. While the church security guards are deputized officers, I don't doubt for a second that they are seconded to the church by the city police. The church is probably not quite as paranoid as some of the Mormon splinter groups, but they are indeed paranoid. The church's history and teachings make it so. There are the GAs to protect, the way over-valued buildings, the temples, transportation of the church president, and a select group of perceived enemies to [likely illegally] watch.

(Story follows. Sorry. But you are under no obligation to believe it. This is just to illustrate how naive they can all be: I have some experience with church security. When I was on leave to SLC, they contacted me. They took me to their control room and everything. Then they were kind enough to take me out for Chinese food. But they didn't have a clue about what to do to protect missionaries who sometimes work in war-torn countries. I briefed them on the piss-poor security of the clueless senior missionaries in the Democratic Republic of Congo. The missionaries had never seen war before, so hung out on the mission president's balcony to watch people getting shot. In their video, they were all laughing. They quit laughing, however, when an RPG round hit the outside window sill of the mission president's bedroom. The shrapnel shredded the wardrobe, the bed, all the furniture and the door frame. Fortunately, no one was in the bedroom when it happened. That's when they started being serious and afraid. They huddled in the hallway, and called me for help, thinking that the American embassy would somehow protect them, like in the movies. I said I probably couldn't figure out anything for them; only in the movies and bad TV shows do Marine guards ever go outside the fence in any dangerous situation. But I knew an employee who knew someone in the local UN peacekeeping force who knew someone who could get a couple of the white UN armored personnel carriers to scoop up the missionaries and drive them to a safer area. Stupid, stupid people, those missionaries. Clueless. But, I DID A THING! Well done, me! I got church security to set up a two-week personal security training course in South Africa,before sending them on to DR Congo. Shortly afterwards [2009] I resigned from the church.)

Laughing at people getting shot: yeah, missionaries are good people.

They are expecting a Zombie Apocalypse and non-LDS are kind of like zombies. They are preparing for Zombieland. Better stock up on Twinkies.

The paranoia of Brigham Young’s time continues. In fact a former mission president who ran one of the Salt Lake missions was told by an apostle he was running a very important mission. He said Salt Lake is The Alamo. The church can’t lose its control there because there’s no other place to go. The church is very worried about losing its influence in Utah.

The church is all about control. Always has been.

Re Church paranoia:

Utah has law that if a thoroughfare on private property is open to public traffic for more than a year, it is subject to being declared a public thoroughfare, or words to that effect.

BYU, because of this law, barricades all the roads into BYU every January 1 to preserve their right to be able to throw anyone off campus they want to, even someone driving on the streets through campus.

There are plenty of other organizations with streets on their property that don't worry about this at all, but Mormons are (a) paranoid and (b) have a legalistic stick up their ***.


Example 2: you've all seen businesses with a fenced off area on the sidewalk in front of the business. They're everywhere. There are fenced off rectangles on the sidewalk around City Creek Centre (owned by LDS Inc), and in each one of the rectangles, cast in the concrete, is a statement: "Property of City Creek Centre". Next time you happen to be downtown at Main and S Temple, take a look.

Yeah, paranoid. And legalistic.

I was a security guard at BYU. I’m familiar with the paranoia. We were even told how to recognize tapping codes in the bathrooms gays were using to find each other for a hookup.

Never busted any gays but I did tackle a shoplifter in the BYU bookstore.

Rubicon Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> I was a security guard at BYU. I’m familiar with
> the paranoia. We were even told how to recognize
> tapping codes in the bathrooms gays were using to
> find each other for a hookup.
>
> Never busted any gays but I did tackle a
> shoplifter in the BYU bookstore.

Yeah those Miracle of Forgiveness books were in high demand along with Mormon Doctrine. <grin>

Maybe they are still anticipating invasion by the Black Panthers.

I kid you not.

      
  
"Yeah, I may be 60 pounds overweight, but Jesus needs me..."



There's an Old Testament story about the Philistines massing to attack Israel.  The night before the scheduled attack, angels of the Lord went tent to tent, killing the Philistines.  Over 100,000 Philistines were killed.


Where's your faith, mormons!?!?

they really don't believe in their garment protection hype.

Garments don't even protect a guy from getting laid!

Although I don't know how this works for the Lady Garmentites...

ED, I bet you don't know if Lady Garmentites work against violation or not.

Do you still keep a trophy rack of violated garmmies?

Why would a legit religion need its own private militia ?

They don't. LDS Inc. is not a legit religion. They're probably concerned that people would kidnap and ransom the profit for a paltry (to them) 20 million.

Speculation: Maybe the church already has its desired facility at an undisclosed location.

The less that people know about it, the better.

This would make a great Mollywood action movie.

"The Saratov Approach II - This Time it's Payback."

Well, LDS Church Security did fall flat on their face at the Marriot Center on Feb 7, 1993.

I was there.

https://universe.byu.edu/2023/01/10/30-years-later-the-marriott-center-bomb-threat/

30 years ago next month, it turns out...

The story has it pretty close to correct. But, if I recall correctly, there were two security people standing next to Hunter (and they got there within a few seconds?) and Cody told Hunter to tell them to go, which hunter did, and they sat down again.

I'm sure they figured they needed to beef up their protocols.

But a private special forces training facility seems a little over the top...

RG



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 01/09/2024 05:59PM by reinventinggrace.

Is this just for Utah or will it be used elsewhere?

Will they call this private militia the mormon battalion ?

  
  

Onward Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints Soldiers!

The church already has its equvalent of D.U.M.B.s so maybe they want a post-apocalyptic army.