In July of last year, voters residing in unincorporated West Mobile voted overwhelmingly to be annexed by the Port City. While the move to reclassify the rural areas garnered support from many, some citizens were less than enthused over the change.

Due to the annexation, the City of Mobile’s firearm ordinance applied to properties outside of city limits historically used for the hunting of doves and quail.

To rectify the issue, Mobile Mayor Sandy Stimpson sponsored an amendment to the ordinance.

“Any time property is annexed into the city, we do our best to preserve its historical uses,” Stimpson said in a statement to Yellowhammer News. “Last year’s annexation included a few properties that have, for years, been used for dove and quail hunting. These properties are in rural areas that were previously in the unincorporated areas of Mobile County. For those longstanding activities to continue, the city had to amend its ordinance prohibiting the discharge of firearms within the city’s corporate limits. We were happy to do this to accommodate this historical use.”

“For months, our Department of Public Safety worked very hard to find a way to accommodate this very limited use of firearms without impacting any existing protections in the city ordinance. We were glad to see the amendment pass today and appreciate the City Council’s support.”

Per the amendment, hunting in the area is limited to bobwhite quail, mourning doves, white-winged doves, and ring-neck doves.

Stimpson’s office also listed new restrictions that are in place when hunting the birds.

• The property must be at least 10 continuous acres
• The hunter cannot be within 700 feet of a school, school grounds, daycare facility, hospital, residential structures, playgrounds, parks, public roads or highways.
• Ammunition is limited to a 7.5 shot

Austen Shipley is a staff writer for Yellowhammer News. You can follow him on X @ShipleyAusten