SPOTSYLVANIA, VA :: The Spotsylvania County Planning Commission voted 6-1 on Wednesday night to approve a motion to amend the Comprehensive Plan to allow Dominion Raceway to be built. The amendment will now go to the Spotsylvania County Board of Supervisors with the recommendation for approval. A recommendation for approval means a majority of the elected board, consisting of seven members, must vote against the Planning Commission recommendation – a move that is very irregular in county-level planning.
If the Comprehensive Plan is amended, the next step will be for Steve Britt, managing member of Dominion Raceway Holdings LLC, to bring the plan for the track itself to the Spotsylvania County Planning Commission, where it would meet likely approval, and to apply for the necessary permits to run the facility. If approved in full, Dominion Raceway will consist of a 4/10 mile NASCAR sanctioned oval, a 1/8 mile SBRA sanctioned dragstrip and a two mile road course. The track would be built in Thornburg, VA just off I-95.
Over a dozen speakers spoke out in support and in opposition of the raceway. Supporters touted the social and economic benefits the speedway would bring to the Thornburg area. Opponents of the track stated the track would be harmful to the overall area, citing noise concerns and the impact on area schools – even though the now defunct Old Dominion Speedway was located next to an elementary school for 65 years and did not disrupt educational activities.
Joyce Ackerman, President of the Coalition to Preserve the Thornburg Countryside, stated the track would result in over 9,000 cars would be bringing fans in to the facility and that local roads cannot sustain that kind of traffic. Of course, the Dominion Raceway complex would only seat 3,500 people, which is half the seating capacity of the former Old Dominion Speedway facility in Manassas.
One speaker also expressed concerns, saying the track would cause an increase in the dealing of illegal substances and another speaker claimed the track would cause widespread foreclosures in the Thornburg area.
Supporters of the track cited the revenue the track would bring to the county through various taxes and stated the Dominion Raceway complex would bring jobs in and around the Thornburg area. The coalition of supporters consisted of Thornburg residents as well as drivers and fans. Steve Britt, who owned Old Dominion Speedway and would be the owner of Dominion Raceway, also spoke at the public hearing. So many people attended the public hearing that the auditorium in which the meeting was held was over-capacity and people had to watch the meeting in the lobby over closed-circuit television. In all, over 35 speakers spoke at the public hearing with the majority of those speakers supporting the Dominion Raceway complex.
