Inching Towards NASCAR in NYC

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Last year, NASCAR developers were looking at land in Staten Island to build a racetrack and Newsday reports that they have since bought the land and they have renderings! International Speedway Corporation bought a 450 acre former oil tank farm for $100 million and wants to build a racetrack with a retail center.

Don't start buying those colorful sponsor laden jackets just yet though, the plan still has many obstacles. The 3/4 mile, 82,500 person track would be built near wetlands and could result in traffic from race attendees. Newsday gives us plenty of information on the plan:

- Ferries would transport fans to other parts of the area
- 240 acres of wetlands would be restored, including trails for walking
- 620,000 sq ft. of retail space would be built in addition to the track
- Sound walls would be built, reducing noise to 67 decibels for the nearest neighborhood (the subway is 92 decibels)

Promoters for the planned track say that 60% of the fans would come from the New York area, which is NASCAR's 4th largest market. Build or not, NASCAR already has a track in Brooklyn. Brooklyn, Michigan. And why build an oval for New York when we have so many roads! How about throwing in some right turns?

Image by Yoswein New York

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Comments (9) [rss]

I'll hold back my redneck jokes until they can prove New York is as large a market as they say it is for NASCAR.
I do watch it myself from time to time, but mostly to see them crash.

Don't forget the obstacle of no one on Staten Island wanting the track here. While Manhattanites may allow their elected officials to cram silly stadium projects down their throats, Staten Islanders do not usually allow this sort of treatment. We already have a baseball stadium that they said would be used throughout the year (for concerts and events) and still sits useless and empty from October to June. Sorry, hickcar ain’t gonna happen here.

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I have an idea! Let's just name Staten Island "Stadium Island". Yankees, Mets, Jets, Giants, Knicks, Nets, Rangers, Islanders, NASCAR, etc... The whole lot of them. Let's build a ultra mega facility JUST for sports on that island.

And then take all of the displaced Staten Islanders and offer them housing options in NYC in the areas where the old stadiums used to be.

Appropriate that NYC's one GOP-voting borough would get a NASCAR track, no?

Anything that keeps the tourists off the streets and away from Ground Zero is okay with me. It's like a venus fly trap attracting the worst of our visitors. I say we build a Cracker Barrel next door. (I'd never say tourists go home; we need their money, particularly our working-class residents)

Man, I ate at my first Cracker Barrel recently and what mighty fine breakfasts they serve. And that hashbrown casserole thing? Delish! Been craving their sourdough toast ever since. Maddening!

Effect... what's your secret? I'll gladly sit at your knee with pad and pencil if you will reveal Richmond County's Stadium-busting wisdom...

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Staten Island will now officially be the home of gittin' er' done.

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