New Track In N.C.

[Cakes206]

http://www.news14charlotte.com/conte...es/?ArID=96057


SPENCER, N.C. -- A new raceway is on track for Rowan County.

County commissioners have approved a plan to build a 2.3-mile road course in Spencer. The $12 million facility is projected to open in early 2007.

“There's not enough track or track time available for all of the motocross enthusiasts within this area," said Frank McGuire of North Carolina Warehouse.

Local leaders hope the new facility will help Spencer rebound from an economic downshift that started in the fall of 2000, when the North Carolina Finishing Company closed and laid off hundreds of workers.

About 100 employees are expected to be hired from the start.

"Going from almost a ghost town for two or three years to have a change around at this pace, it's wonderful,” Mayor Jody Everhart said Wednesday.

The facility will be called High Rock International Raceway. It will be geared to private clubs and open-wheel racers who have no place to test at 140 mph.

Developers expect it to operate year round, injecting $50 million into the local economy.

The facility is not designed to attract NASCAR teams, but developers said that might become a future possibility.

The vacant land around the North Carolina Finishing Company will serve as a parking lot for the speedway.