Saturday, August 23, 2008

Motorsports facility seeking home in county

Julia M. Dendinger News-Bulletin Staff Writer; jdendinger@news-bulletin.com

Due to a publication snafu, a zone change request unanimously recommended for approval by the county planning and zoning board last month must come back for a second go-round.

On July 23, Route 66 Community Multiplex, Inc. came before planning and zoning with a request to amend the zone map from outland district to commercial to allow for the operation of a motorsports facility.

After the company's presentation and several members of the public speaking in favor of the zone change, the planning commission unanimously recommended approval.

Unfortunately, when county attorney David Pato reviewed the legal description that had been published about the 326 acres in question, he found an error.

The legal description of the property that appeared in the newspaper, subsequent mailed notifications and public agendas indicated that the property was in the valley. The land in question is on the mesa, approximately 2.5 miles south of Meadow Lake.

Because of that error, Pato said the notice should be republished with the correct legal description and the matter referred back to planning and zoning.

At the July planning and zoning hearing, Tony Williams, attorney for Route 66, said the company had been working on the project for many months. "This would be a regional motorsports facility that would serve central New Mexico," he said. "The existing race track in Albuquerque is under pressure by the Mesa del Sol development to close and move."

Williams went on to call the property on the county's east mesa "a perfect area for an amusement area." He noted that the closest residential center, Meadow Lake, was over a mile to the north of the proposed development.

The north boundary of the property is 2.5 miles south of Meadow Lake and one-quarter of a mile north of the platted but undeveloped portion of Rio del Oro.

Access to the site will be on a right-of-way running eastward from the Manzano Expressway about 5.8 miles and then southward one mile to the site.

"Motorsports has a worldwide following," he said. "And it is a very popular sport in Valencia County."

According to the site plan submitted by Route 66, there will be three drag strips, a three-eighths of a mile oval dirt track and a fifth of a mile paced oval track.

The site layout indicates plans for an educational complex, event center, restaurant and lounge, motorsports museum, motor-cross and quad track and playground areas.

Darryl Bonneville was a volunteer spokesperson for Route 66 advocating for the facility. "There are a lot of racers in Valencia County, including kids," he said. "I'm concerned that if the Albuquerque track closes, they will resort to street racing."

Bonneville went on to say that motorsports has become a high-tech, high-dollar industry. "Purdue University offers a master's degree in motorsports technology," he said. "It is a $1.75 billion industry annually in the U.S. There are over 430,000 people who use these kinds of facilities."

Being a good neighbor and complying with county regulations and requests were high priorities for the developers, Bonneville said. The zone change request is from outland district to commercial with a conditional use. The conditional use is the construction of a motorsports facility. If developers deviate from that type of planning, the zoning would be revoked by the county.

Bonneville said events at the track would be usually be on Friday nights and every other or every third Saturday. "During the big, three-day weekends, we would have events Friday evening, Saturday and Sunday," he said. "Also remember that from mid-October through April it would be closed. We can't run on the tracks in the cold weather."

Several county residents spoke at the planning and zoning hearing in favor of the motorsports facility. Randy Smith of Peralta said he currently races at Hollywood Hills, north of Albuquerque. "That's 60 miles one way. I am anxious to see something come to this community," he said. "It would be nice to have someplace local for kids to test and tune."

A 25-year resident of the county, Donald Clinger, said he has been racing for the past 11 years. "I used to race at Duke City, but they closed so now I go to Hollywood Hills," he said. "There are a lot of kids involved. It takes a lot of time to work on a car, and it gives them some place to be."

Phil York, who lives in the area near El Cerro Loop, said that while the commission might think he would be concerned about increased traffic, he was not.

"The times the races are scheduled are not during the busy traffic times," he said. "I know people view this as a dangerous sport, but these guys have the greatest respect for safety regulations — probably more than the average person.

"The majority of Valencia County residents leave and drive 100 miles, taking money out of the county. When you are traveling and racing, you spend money. I'd sure like to see them spend that money in Valencia County."

The planning and zoning board voted 5-0 recommending approval of the request with the condition that the developers hold a public meeting for residents in the Meadow Lake and El Cerro area, since those are the two closest population centers to the development.

Representatives from Route 66 Community Multiplex, Inc. will be available for questions at 3:30 p.m. on Wednesday, Aug. 27, before the next planning and zoning hearing at the county administrative building in Los Lunas.

The meeting will be held in the north conference room in the county administration building at 444 Luna Ave. The planning and zoning meeting begins at 4 p.m., and the zone request will be reheard at that time.

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