Re: ProSolo, Spectators, TV, et al.

["Arthur Emerson" <vreihen@hotmail.com>]

Jon Rush <jonathan.rush@sdrc.com> wrote:
>
>In Pennsylvania we have what are called brownfield sites. They
>are former industrial sites that have been contaminated to the
>point where they are unsuitable for continuos human habitation,
>but not so bad that occasional visits by humans are prohibited.

Sounds like the perfect place for an autocross theme park! ;-)
We're sorry, but the health department says that you can only
run one autocross here per month, so we're refusing your
entry. :-)  OK, I'll skip the SE PA Amish autocross jokes.

Seriously, though, before we start paving over the Love Canal,
let's investigate another option.  In many metropolitan
areas, railroad yards are sitting abandoned.  They are
generally flat, have well-defined perimeters, and are in
industrial areas where the sounds of F500's wouldn't be
an issue.  The ground is packed, and drainage shouldn't
be an issue.  I've got a small one down the street from
my office, and it has the Hudson River on one side and
a hill perfect for building bleachers on the other side.

If you're looking for cases of abandoned rail yard re-use,
Yellow Freight built a whole distribution terminal on an
old railroad yard in Maybrook, NY.  The biggest one that
I know of has to be Liberty State Park in NJ, where they
built a whole museum and park on top of the old Jersey
Central passenger train and ferry terminal.  My gut
feeling is that one of these properties can be obtained
for a song and dance, just to get it back onto the tax
rolls.....

-Arthur ("Just what is that liquid oozing out from cracks in
          the pavement at Englishtown every afternoon?" edition)