It’s a common fact housing developments and drag strips rarely mesh. More often than not, the track comes up on the short end of the stick.
As it stands now, a housing developer seeks to bring development to a 2300-acre property adjacent to Bradenton Motorsports Park, a top Florida drag racing destination for over 50 years and the Freedom Factory, the oval track formerly known as DeSoto Speedway..
The project, dubbed ‘Taylor Ranch,’ will move onto the next project phase, as commissioners voted 5-2 in favor of transmitting the proposal for state review. The property in question is located east of Lakewood Ranch and south of S.R. 64. The development would be west of Bradenton Motorsports Park and directly adjacent to Freedom Factory, a 3/8th oval track being renovated by YouTube star Cleetus McFarland.
The proposal seeks to change 2,308 acres of agricultural land to Urban Fringe 3, which enables developers to build three homes per acre.
Schroeder-Manatee Ranch, the proposed developer of the property, said through their attorney Kyle Grimes the motorsports facilities have protection.
“Our client knows the race tracks are there and has no intention of doing anything to affect them operating, and that’s why we’re putting in these provisions,” Grimes told yourobserver.com. – (RELATED STORY)
Provisions proposed include an 84-foot minimum land buffer and a 20-to-25-foot wall.
The Thursday county meeting met significant opposition from the track operators, residents, and motorsports enthusiasts from the area.
Former Bradenton Motorsports Park owner Jeannette Williams told the BradentonDailyNews.com (RELATED STORY) eventually, the noise will drive the residents to seek to silence the tracks.
“With 4,500 homes butted up against the racetrack, I mean, even with a wall, they’re going to hear the noise,” said Jeannette Williams, the former owner of the race track. “Eventually, they’re not going to be happy, even if they say they know the racetrack is here; eventually, they’re going to want the noise to stop.”
McFarland told wfla.com (related story) that he fears the development, if it goes through, would eventually lead to the demise of the Bradenton tracks.
“These tracks run all the time, and if you put a standard neighborhood next door, you are going to be waking up babies, you are going to be causing problems, and a lot of these people who are going to move in aren’t going to understand they are moving next to a racetrack,” McFarland said. “It is a classic case of how a racetrack dies, it has happened time and time again around the country, and we don’t want our racetracks to die.”