Another way to get a good site is to work with the
community and create a public park. It has been done.
White county Oregon, near Medford has had a county
park/ goKart & autocross facility for years. It also
has a shooting range and dragstrip FWIW.
Even in San Jose CA there is precedence too. The
bicyclists built a velodrome 40+ years ago as a county
park. It remains a premeire bicycle racing facility
today. The bicycle clubs built, maintain, and run the
facility. The county owns it. Everone is very happy
with the deal.
There are serious advantages to the plan. Since it is
public the tax issues are minimal, and neighborhood
complaints are far less. The only club investment is
in capital improvements and maintenance, not land and
skyhigh taxes too. A really big deal in a place like
San Jose.
Don't feel too bad for poor SFR and the high cost of
land. They were offered just such a deal about 5 years
ago by the same folks that administer the bicycle
velodrome on 10 acres adjacent to the freeway and an
airport. They turned the idea down as they demand a
deed and ownership of their pavement.
Whatever.
It still is a grand idea in someone else's town I
think.
Actually any program with the purpose of giving to the
community is a really good plan. Taking or feeling
deprived is not going to get you there today, maybe
never did.
On a similar subject, there is a study out of Willow
Springs CA covering 10+ years of driving instruction
that used a hybrid form of autocross and open track
programs that shows a 90+% reduction in teenage
drivers' accident rates. And 80+% for those over 20!!
We sure could and should use this sort of data to
justify our programs instead of spinning our wheels in
endless feuds over db levels that may or may not be a
real issue.
Reasonable minds may differ.
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Dennis Hale
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