ASHEVILLE, N.C. (AP) — Asheville's city attorney says officials probably cannot stop gun shows at a building located on city property.

The Asheville Citizen-Times reports (http://avlne.ws/Wq5AKv) that city attorney Bob Oast says state law limits local government's ability to regulate guns.

City Councilman Cecil Bothwell said earlier this month the city should ban gun shows on city-owned property.

The WNC Agriculture Center that hosts gun shows is located on city property. The state of North Carolina operates the center and owns its buildings. Oast says the state can make its own rules for its property.

The center is scheduled to hold four more gun shows this year. The next is to start March 23.

Bothwell says he will continue to push to ban the shows. He proposed the ban after the Connecticut school shootings.

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Information from: The Asheville Citizen-Times, http://www.citizen-times.com