Florida's Palm Beach International Raceway, formerly known as Moroso Motorsports Park, looks like it's set for demolition.
The owner of the track has signed a contract to sell the property to a company called Portman Industrial, which plans to transform the land into an industrial park.
Locals of Palm Beach County aren't happy, however, and are actively trying to prevent the sale. Apparently, there's another buyer who's interested in keeping the track open, but it may be too late.
The track is used by more than just locals, as a TV show, Street Outlaws, has recently been filming at the site's NHRA-spec quarter-mile dragstrip. The road racing course is also apparently FIA Grade II certified, and capable of hosting a big-name racing series like IndyCar. The track is already used by some IndyCar teams for winter testing.
READ MORE
Local motoring enthusiasts are putting up a fight to keep the track, with more than 100 citizens voicing their dislike for the plan at an advisory planning meeting. Some say the industrial park would cause excessive traffic, and others were concerned that the lack of a public racetrack would force car enthusiasts from the controlled environment of the raceway and onto public streets.
A website has been set up by a campaign to save the track, with people like McLaren Racing CEO, Zak Brown, musician Pitbull, John Oates from Hall & Oates, and IndyCar champion Danny Sullivan all voicing their support to save the track. McLaren Racing CEO, Zak Brown, notably said that the Palm Beach International Raceway is "a legendary track in a prime location" with "a great history" and it would be a "shame to see it go."
The Palm Beach County zoning commission, which hosted the meeting, voted unanimously against allowing the deal to go ahead, but the commission's decision is non-binding and strictly advisory.
In the end, it'll be up to the Palm Beach County Commission to have the final say. The Palm Beach County Commission will be no doubt influenced by the lower zoning commission when making its decision but is surely interested in Portman Industrial's plan as well.
The company says its redevelopment of the site will provide around 1,500 new jobs, as well as bring in more tax revenue to the county.
The county commission's decision will come later in April.