A developer in New Jersey has set its sights on a well-established gun range. Citing environmental issues, the plaintiffs want the range to cease operation as they purchase an adjacent lot.
According to a filing in Camden County Court, Bryn Mawr Garwood LLC is suing Iron Horse R&R LLC. Iron Horse is a private gun club that’s been in operation since 1947. Bryn Mawr Garwood LLC is a New Jersey LLC that was formed on March 6, 2026 and its “authorized person” and/or “principal” is Harvey Sternberg. Sternberg is a lawyer from Pennsylvania and in the real estate business.
The complaint came about when Sternberg’s company entered into a contract with the owner of a property adjoining Iron Horse — the “Waddell Property.” What’s the nature of the lawsuit? The filing alleges that Iron Horse is engaging in “solid waste disposal and soil stockpiling” activities, is “causing harm to the environment on the Adjoining Property and likely also causing harm to the Waddell Property,” that the “unlawful actions … are likely to continue causing harm to the Adjoining Property, to the Waddell Property and to Plaintiff,” and other allegations.
What are these allegations predicated on? Seven times in the complaint “potentially contaminated” is repeated. There might be potentially contaminated soil. There might be potentially contaminated soil from “unknown sources.” From their own admission, the potentially contaminated soil “has not been tested.”
Exhibit A of the filing features photographs of some of the potentially contaminated soil that was allegedly dumped on or dumped on encroaching areas of adjacent properties. The complaint states that defendants “have brought soil material stockpiles, asphalt millings, construction debris, miscellaneous solid waste and debris, and potentially contaminated soil, from unknown sources, which has not been tested, onto the Adjoining Property. See true and accurate photographs of the site attached hereto as Exhibit A.”
Considering the high stakes of buying the adjacent property and alleging there’s contaminated soil on it, wouldn’t a simple soil test settle most of this dispute? The Rutgers Soil Testing Lab can do a lead test for $18. One would think this would be a solid first step in seeing if the contamination status of “potential” is in fact actual. More extensive testing could be done as well with costs ranging from $1,000 to $5,000.00 — or less, depending on what’s being checked and how much of it.
Iron Horse has its own theory on why Bryn Mawr Garwood LLC is suing them.
“A lawsuit filed by a land developer, Harvey Sternberg, against the gun range that seeks a Court Order to immediately shut down the range indefinitely so that Harvey Sternberg can proceed with his plans to develop the property and make a profit,” Iron Horse says in an online statement.
This theory that Sternberg is allegedly trying to force a land grab by purchasing Iron Horse was parroted by the attorney representing the range. Mark Karpo is representing Iron Horse. Karpo isn’t licensed to practice law in New Jersey, but has applied to serve pro hac vice in this case. Karpo said that Sternberg did make an offer to Iron Horse to buy it.
“He’s basically trying to use the New Jersey environmental laws to bring a lawsuit to shut down the gun range for polluting the environment,” Karpo said. “And his connection to the case is that he has a contract with the Waddells to buy their property. He hasn’t bought it, but he has a contract to buy it. So that’s his alleged standing to even bring this lawsuit.”
Karpo explained that as soon as he received the lawsuit, he sent out discovery requests. He was looking for any documents and reports concerning the allegations. “You know what do you have as far as expert reports?” Karpo said during the interview. “We have no response. Just these allegations.”
It’s not just Iron Horse who will be affected should Sternberg succeed at what Karpo says he aims to do. The Gloucester Township community as a whole will have to bear the burden of some additional 750 townhomes if this goes Sternberg’s way.
“This … is going to push Gloucester Township over the edge into the abyss, as far as the ability to handle schooling and sewage and trash and hospitals and all that stuff,” Karpo explained. “So there’s a big community effort to stop this development for the good of the community.”
What also got brought up in the filing is Gloucester Township getting involved in looking into the scenario at Iron Horse.
“Upon information and belief, Gloucester Township officials have also visited the site, taken drone photos of the overall site, and instructed Iron Horse and Rea to remove all construction equipment, heavy machinery, and junkyard elements that have been placed on the site, including old buses, trucks, cars, and the like,” the filing notes. In the complaint it’s stated that the range has failed to obey directives from the township.
Where Gloucester Township officials came upon said “information” or helped cause their beliefs is not readily known. They were allegedly moved to visit the site and deploy a drone to take photos of the location, so it must have been a good tip.
Over the last five years, a person named Harvey Sternberg who is in real estate, has donated thousands of dollars to political causes. Several donations went to Democrat politicians and Democratic causes located in Gloucester Township. “Harvey has a reputation for making political contributions,” Karpo told Bearing Arms.
The current seated mayor, David R. Mayer, and other Democrat candidates on respective slates with Mayer received $9,000 in donations from Sternberg in 2025 alone. Gloucester Township politicians received an additional $9,000 in donations dating back to 2021.
In 2026, the GT Chairman’s Club received $6,000 from Sternberg and an additional $3,000.00 in both 2023 and 2024, totaling to $12,000.00. The GT Chairman’s Club is not officially associated with any political party, however it’s reported to be aligned with the Democrat party — the party of the current mayor and council — based on their actions.
Over the last two years Sternberg donated $6,000.00 to the Gloucester Township Democrat Committee.
Dating back to 2022, Sternberg donated $8,000.00 to the Gloucester Township Citizens for Government Reform, a PAC said to be “directly connected to Team Mayer.”
$44,000 in total has been donated by Sternberg directly to elected members of the township’s government, local Democrat candidates, and/or Democratic leaning PACs that benefit those in power in Gloucester Township.
A public hearing in the Camden County Superior Court Chancery Division in New Jersey is scheduled for September 4. Those in opposition to the suit are encouraged to attend. Karpo is optimistic about how Iron Horse will fare throughout this fight and suspects there’ll be a reasonable ruling. “This is a classic land grab — by a land developer — to shut down a range so he can build condos,” Karpo said. “A long-established range that’s codified into the township. That’s that’s what this is.”
Bryn Mawr Garwood LLC v. Iron Horse R&R LLC, Dean Rea, et.al. has been docketed as CAM-L-002643-26.
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