The Henderson City Council passed an amendment to a zoning ordinance Monday night that paves the way for motorsports activities to be developed in areas under the city’s jurisdiction.
Following a public hearing during which individuals spoke for and against the idea of allowing the development of motorsports racetracks, the ordinance passed by a 6-2 vote. Council members Garry Daeke and Mike Rainey voted against the ordinance. Marion Brodie Williams, Sara Coffey, Lamont Noel, Melissa Elliott, Ola Thorpe-Cooper and Jason Spriggs voted for the ordinance.
Eight individuals spoke in favor of passing the ordinance, including the two racetrack development partners, Justin Davis and Devin Anderson. Speaking in opposition included a couple from Warren County, who warned that such developments bring liabilities and can have negative impacts in the community.
The council vote means that a developer may appear before the zoning board of adjustment to request a special-use permit for a racetrack for all-terrain vehicles, motocross equipment, motorcycles and other three- and four-wheelers.
A special use permit, which can be a rigorous process, is required to proceed. Once obtained, the special-use permit would allow motorsports activities in areas zoned I1 (Industrial Park District), I2 (Industrial Non-Park District), RA (Residential Agriculture) and R40 (Low Density Residential) in the City and ETJ.
Before the vote was taken, Council member Daeke said it was a wonderful business opportunity but that any such facility had to be put in the right place. He said, “To me it’s only about noise.” He said he wants to allow people to do what they want but that people are afforded the right to sit in their yard and enjoy the quiet.
Daeke questioned whether the right buffers are in the zoning ordinance and whether the distances are far enough from schools, nursing facilities and homes, specifically if existing homes in R40, low-density residential should be excluded from the ordinance.
Some specific points included in the ordinance include hours of operation, setbacks and minimum distances from places like nursing homes and schools.
The racetrack may be open Monday -Friday between 3 p.m. to 11 p.m.; Saturdays 9 a.m. to 11 p.m. and Sundays between 1 p.m. and 5 p.m. No racing may be conducted between 11 p.m. and 7 a.m.
The 15-part Design Standards for Racetracks section of the ordinance outlines details pertaining to safety, hours of operation and logistics, among others. Part 7, for example deals with noise mitigation and reads in part: “An adequate noise mitigation plan shall be provided which shall demonstrate that good faith efforts to reduce noise effects in the vicinity have been made…All motor vehicles participating in a racing event shall be designed to keep vehicle noise in compliance with of 95 dbA measured in a stationary test. Vehicle sound must be measured by a properly calibrated decibel meter from 50 feet, at a right angle to the vehicle, with the vehicle at a no-load revolutions per minute (RPM) of 3,500.”