The Spotsylvania Planning Commission and Board of Supervisors may be asked to vote on one of the most damaging rezonings ever considered for Spotsylvania County--the racetrack and drag strip at Thornburg.

The current comprehensive plan calls for office-based businesses and low-impact business development that complements the Jackson Gateway concept in general and the Thornburg area specifically.

The racetrack-drag strip applicant has submitted information to VDOT requesting major variances to the requirements for entrances to the site. Information submitted to the county indicates there could be more than 100 events per year, with a potential 9,000 people attending concerts and race events.

If VDOT does make an exception to road access requirements for the racetrack, based upon location relative to the interstate, then why have design criteria at all?

There are many reasons to reject this application:

1. The Interstate 95 exits at Mudd Tavern Road terminate on a two-lane secondary country road. During the summer months, on particular holiday periods and weekends, Mudd Tavern Road is a parking lot, as is Interstate 95. What will traffic be like with an additional 3,500 to 9,000 people going to the raceway?

2. Thornburg Middle and Riverview Elementary schools are less than a mile from the proposed racetrack, drag strip, and entertainment venue. Massaponax High School is less than two miles from the proposed site. There will be noise, pollution, and disruption of educational instruction affecting the children in these schools.

3. The Company 8 Fire and Rescue Station is less than a city block from Mudd Tavern Road and U.S. 1. With the increased local and I-95 traffic, emergency response times will be severely affected. Why should residents in need of fire and EMS help be penalized by slow response because of gridlock that racetrack events will produce?

4. The applicant has stated that one of the reasons it is leaving Manassas is that people have had numerous noise complaints. There are hundreds of homes, schools, and churches in our community that will be affected by the noise and traffic generated by this type of facility. If it is noisy in Manassas, it will be noisy in Thornburg.

Diane C. Kuechler

Spotsylvania