Quite often in business, what works for one company can be devasting for another company.

A meeting scheduled for September 19 in Baytown, Texas could determine the future of Royal Purple Raceway in a very negative manner.

Seth Angel, vice president and general manager for the raceway, says if a decision to allow the recycling of concrete is granted to HPP Materials his NHRA sanction and the future of the drag strip, located just outside of Houston, could be in serious jeopardy.

Quite often in business, what works for one company can be devasting for another company.

A meeting scheduled for September 19 in Baytown, Texas could determine the future of Royal Purple Raceway in a very negative manner.

Seth Angel, vice president and general manager for the raceway, says if a decision to allow the recycling of concrete is granted to HPP Materials his NHRA sanction and the future of the drag strip, located just outside of Houston, could be in serious jeopardy.

Angel's issue stems from a commercial recycling company, HPP Materials, and their concrete crushing  operation which is located on a tract of land on the east side of the track. Angel says their large pile of  concrete debris has been growing daily and as a result, the prevailing winds are blowing dust and debris into the Royal Purple Raceway property and has effected the racing surface which had to be corrected before racing could occur.

"If HPP Materials is allowed to continue with its current business plan of operating a concrete crusher and industrial waste recycling facility next door to an outdoor motorsports park that attracts over 500,000 participants and spectators annually then we will have no choice but to cease doing business as a motorsports park," explained Angel.

"Unfortunately, should we be forced to close our doors it will immediately halt the substantial economic impact our venue brings to the region, specifically to the City of Baytown and its hotel and restaurant industry."

Angel said a compromise was offered and rejected by HHP executives,  citing they were operating within industry standards. He estimates HHP continues to bring in hundreds of trucks daily consisting of concrete and other debris.

About the TCEQ Public Meeting:

What: TCEQ Public Meeting: HPP Materials, Inc. Air Permit #101641

When: Thursday, September 19th, 2013 at 7:00 pm.

Where: Chambers County Community Building McLeod Park 10717 Langston Drive Mont Belvieu, TX 77523"We offered as a solution, that would be mutually beneficial for both sides, to relocate this pile of debris and the proposed rock crusher, which they don't have yet because they don't have the air permit yet ... all they are doing is stockpiling a bunch of old concrete which they hope to crush in the future," said Angel. "They have applied for a permit with the TCQ which regulates rock crushers. Once they applied for the air permit, we knew this wasn't going to work."

Angel said the concerns regarding the rock crushing business aren't hypothetical, nor are the potential negatives it could have on his facility. He confirmed one race in July had to be halted while the track was cleaned from dust blown on the racing surface during a July windstorm.

"The prevailing southeast winds are blowing this concrete dust onto our property and onto the racing surface," Angel explained. "The racing surface is sticky. Anything hits it, and it's stuck to it. It hit us once during a race weekend and has done so during the week. It's a huge problem and a severe nuisance to the raceway."

HPP has applied for an air permit with the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, and track officials plan to protest the granting of the permit.  A TCEQ Public Meeting is scheduled for 7 p.m., on Thursday, Sept. 19, in Mont Belvieu, Texas,and RPR officials are encouraging race fans, local merchants, business partners and others to attend to show support for the race track.

"We know how loyal race fans are and we're asking everyone to come and support us at this public meeting," Angel said. "The future of professional drag racing in Houston is at stake."

The Chambers County Community Building is located at McLeod Park at 10717 Langston Drive in Mont Belvieu, Texas.

Angel confirmed the NHRA is aware of the situation and has put the facility on notice if the issue isn't resolved, they could lose not only their 2014 national event date but also the sanction.

"We just received the letter from the PRO Board of Directors yesterday," Angel said. "They were made aware of it and are concerned. At the end of the day, if the NHRA decides to pull their sanction then we're done."

Angel addressed a letter to NHRA senior vice president of racing operations Graham Light, asking that the track be kept on the 2014 national event schedule. In the 2014 schedule released by NHRA last week, Royal Purple Raceway was given the April 25-27 weekend for the race.

"Royal Purple Raceway is fully engaged to prevent HPP Materials Inc., the owner of the facility, from operating in such a manner that interferes with the activity of our raceway," Angel said in the letter.

The track also has filed a lawsuit in Chambers County, Texas, to address the operation of HPP's facility and its impact on Royal Purple Raceway.

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