New racetrack approved in California (Merced)!

[Pete Millikin]

Approval was granted last night for a new racetrack complex in Merced. Details here:

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/showthre ... did=319927

[kary]

I went to their website but never could really pinpoint the exact location of the race park....anyone?

[ethand]

By Corinne Reilly and Leslie Albrecht

Riverside Motorsports Park moved from plan to reality early Wednesday morning when the Merced County Board of Supervisors approved the raceway complex in a series of votes that spanned eight and half hours.

With Supervisors Deidre Kelsey and John Pedrozo dissenting on two key votes, plans for the 1,200-acre racing venue earned just enough support to move forward.

The board's 2:30 a.m. decision followed hours of emotional public testimony from raceway supporters and opponents, and nearly four years of countywide debate over a project that many say will set the course for the county's development for decades to come.

More than 300 people filled the board chambers and nearby overflow rooms at the meeting's 6 p.m. start. When the final vote was cast just before 2:30 a.m. the crowd had thinned to a weary three dozen.

While racetrack supporters hailed the decision as an economic boon for the county, opponents called the project's approval an assault on both the environment and local agriculture.

"By approving this project ... you are pushing development to my doorway," said Karen Crane, whose family runs a farm near the raceway's proposed site. "Our land will never be the same, and that rests in your hands."

Propopents pointed to the raceway's economic benefits, which are projected to include hundreds of jobs and $180 million in annual business.

"The bottom line in Meced County is we need jobs," said Carl Pollard, a Merced City Councilman who spoke in support of the raceway. "We have too many people on welfare...We have to diversify our economy. We have to change with the times."

After the final approval, raceway CEO John Condren tallied the many benefits he says his racing venue will bring to the county.

"I'm very pleased with the way things went," said Condren. "It means a diversified job base, it means increased tourism and revenue, it means entertainment and recreation." Of the supervisors, Kelsey voiced the strongest opposition to the raceway -- at one point reading a 35-minute statement condemning the project as a disaster for taxpayers and an attack on farmers and ranchers near the raceway's future northern Merced County site.

Kelsey slammed environmental reviews of the project as inadequate and rushed, urging the board to delay its vote until more studies on the project's impacts could be completed.

She said approving of the project would damage the public trust and disgrace the supervisors.

"As this project sits in front of me today, it's terrible," said Kelsey. "...The credibility of our board is on the line with this." Pedrozo cast the only other votes against the project.

"I know what it is to be a farmer and I know what it is to have cars coming down your country roads," said Pedrozo. "I can't support the (environmental impact report), not until I am totally confident that all the people that live out there are taken care of."

The board voted on six motions that collectively allowed the project to move forward. By the end of the meeting, the board had voted to approve the project's environmental reviews, to allow traffic and noise from the raceway to exceed current county standards, and to overrule a finding by the Airport Land Use Commission that the racetrack's site is too close to Castle Airport's runway.

Condren first proposed the project in 2003. Since then, the raceway's location has been the subject of much of the debate.

Condren and raceway backers say the project's future site makes perfect sense -- a stone's throw away from an airport and within 100 miles of 10 million potential race fans.

Those opposed to the raceway say its valley location means the air pollution it generates will remain trapped in the area. They say a more remote location would make noise and traffic from the raceway less burdensome.

Environmental reviews have confirmed the raceway will contribute considerably to air quality problems the county already faces.

More recently, the controversy has centered around a plan to manage traffic to the site which proposes to route the majority of out-of-town traffic from Highway 99 through a rural neighborhood just west of the track.

The $250 million raceway complex is planned to contain eight different racing venues, a shopping mall, restaurants, an arcade and a lake. In addition to professional racing events, the park will host amateur racing, drag racing, motocross and go-kart racing, concerts, car shows and festivals. It is not planned to host NASCAR events.

While typical Saturdays and Sundays are estimated to bring 5,000 to 15,000 visitors to the raceway, big-name events held one weekend a month could draw daily crowds between 20,000 and 50,000. The Merced County Planning Commission voted in favor of the project's approval in October.

[993Panzer]

I saw one really rough map location and it seemed to be about 100 miles South East of the Bay. There wasn't anything with better detail other than a map of the proposed facility.

[Dan Chambers]

Very interesting.

I'm currently working on a jobsite in Barstow, 3 hours' drive from downtown San Diego, and was telling my colleague just yesterday: "Barstow would actually be a great place for a track."

Reasons:
1) Half the distance to Pahrump/Vegas tracks.
2) Lots and lots of open space, and easy to get a location where noise isn't an issue.
3) With Yermo MCS just east of Barstow, lot's of guys/gals looking for some fun and recreation on the weekends, so plenty of potential fans and participants.
4) Barstow's major source of income is tourism/travel services (yes, tourism ..... I know!). A track would add nicely to the recreational opportunities of this town.
5) Jobs. In a word, something Barstow residence can't seem to get enough of.
6) The current list of decent hotels, tire shops and fuel providers exceeds that of other racetrack towns we currently drive to, ie: Rosemond, Pahrump, Buttonwillow.

So, I wonder if anyone has concidered ... "Barstow International Raceway?" Jeeze..... then we'd have a BIR-BRI?

Just my ramblings......

[RickK]

Seems to be in Atwater, CA right near Castle Airport
http://www.mercedsunstar.com/local/story/13111722p-13760553c.html

[kary]

Very interesting.

I'm currently working on a jobsite in Barstow, 3 hours' drive from downtown San Diego, and was telling my colleague just yesterday: "Barstow would actually be a great place for a track."

Reasons:
1) Half the distance to Pahrump/Vegas tracks.
2) Lots and lots of open space, and easy to get a location where noise isn't an issue.
3) With Yermo MCS just east of Barstow, lot's of guys/gals looking for some fun and recreation on the weekends, so plenty of potential fans and participants.
4) Barstow's major source of income is tourism/travel services (yes, tourism ..... I know!). A track would add nicely to the recreational opportunities of this town.
5) Jobs. In a word, something Barstow residence can't seem to get enough of.
6) The current list of decent hotels, tire shops and fuel providers exceeds that of other racetrack towns we currently drive to, ie: Rosemond, Pahrump, Buttonwillow.

So, I wonder if anyone has concidered ... "Barstow International Raceway?" Jeeze..... then we'd have a BIR-BRI?

Just my ramblings......

Dan
You got one other thing, Barstow is beautiful in the summer also

[Dan Chambers]

Dan
You got one other thing, Barstow is beautiful in the summer also

Yes, I know. You're absolutely right, Kary. And, based on elevation and latitude, it's consistant with Rosemond/Lancaster, Pahrump, and Buttonwillow/Bakersfield. It also has the same geographic characteristic of being in the rain shadow of a major mountain range, similar to many track locations like BW, SOW, WIR, Pahrump, etc.

We drive at those tracks, don't we? I'm pretty sure we have in the past.....

[kary]

Dan
You got one other thing, Barstow is beautiful in the summer also

Yes, I know. You're absolutely right, Kary. And, based on elevation and latitude, it's consistant with Rosemond/Lancaster, Pahrump, and Buttonwillow/Bakersfield. It also has the same geographic characteristic of being in the rain shadow of a major mountain range, similar to many track locations like BW, SOW, WIR, Pahrump, etc.

We drive at those tracks, don't we? I'm pretty sure we have in the past.....

I have not checked Dan, but I am sure Buttonwillow is not at the same elevation as the the high desert locations like WSIR, SOW, and Pahrump.

My point in mentioning this was the Merced track is just like the others in term heat but not distance. If were considering going to a track in Merced, which is more like Buttonwillow in climate than WSIR or Pahrump, I would rather go to Laguna Seca or even Infineon since they are about the same haul. They are better tracks, better climates, better surroundings. If you have not gone to Laguna or Infineon you should try it. It puts tracks like WSIR, SOW, Pahrump, and Buttonwillow to shame in both driving and climate/surroundings.

Enjoy yourself though in Barstow

[Dan Chambers]

I have not checked Dan, but I am sure Buttonwillow is not at the same elevation as the the high desert locations like WSIR, SOW, and Pahrump.

Kary, you're right. Buttonwilow is between 250 and 300 ft elev.. I should have said "and/or similar to the other tracks" in reference to latitude and elevation.

The point was: we drive at tracks in the desert now. Barstow is only three hours driving from San Diego at 'normal' speeds ... half the drive to Pahrump. Merced is a bit longer a drive than Barstow at around 4.5 to 5 hours up the 99 (at least, the last time I drove it). So, I'd rather drive to Barstow than to Merced. But, as to everything else: you're right, Kary. You're always right.

As to me having fun in Barstow .... it is a tourist town, afterall.

[MikeD]

My point in mentioning this was the Merced track is just like the others in term heat but not distance. If were considering going to a track in Merced, which is more like Buttonwillow in climate than WSIR or Pahrump, I would rather go to Laguna Seca or even Infineon since they are about the same haul. They are better tracks, better climates, better surroundings. If you have not gone to Laguna or Infineon you should try it. It puts tracks like WSIR, SOW, Pahrump, and Buttonwillow to shame in both driving and climate/surroundings.

Good points Kary. However, both Infineon and Lagua Seca have noise restrictions. If I read that press release correctly this new Merced track will not.

I will reserve my judgment of this track until I see a track design and photos.

[kary]

My point in mentioning this was the Merced track is just like the others in term heat but not distance. If were considering going to a track in Merced, which is more like Buttonwillow in climate than WSIR or Pahrump, I would rather go to Laguna Seca or even Infineon since they are about the same haul. They are better tracks, better climates, better surroundings. If you have not gone to Laguna or Infineon you should try it. It puts tracks like WSIR, SOW, Pahrump, and Buttonwillow to shame in both driving and climate/surroundings.

Good points Kary. However, both Infineon and Lagua Seca have noise restrictions. If I read that press release correctly this new Merced track will not.

I will reserve my judgment of this track until I see a track design and photos.

When I was at Infineon (two times) there were no restrictions for sound. Laguna does hvae sound restrictions but I do not see the issue with this. POC'ers make the trip each year, as I have for the past 3 out of 4 years, without issue, that is if one prepares well.

Mike you are correct, I suppose we will have wait and see what the offerring is in Merced, though I think it is rather flat there which may not compare to a Laguna or Infineon track in terms of interest.

[Mike]

A new track between LA and Vegas?
http://www.countryclubroadcourse.com

[MikeD]

A new track between LA and Vegas?
http://www.countryclubroadcourse.com

These guys don't even know how to put together a website correctly, and that's so easy 14 year olds are doing it. You sure you would want to trust your life to that sort of incompetence?

[Dan Chambers]

A new track between LA and Vegas?
http://www.countryclubroadcourse.com

Half way between LA and Vegas? Did someone already build a facility in Barstow?????? ( )