NASCAR Can Provide Lessons For Us All
Anyone that knows me well knows that I am a big NASCAR fan. This has led me to follow closely a story that has developed near Charlotte, NC that combines racing with another interest of mine.
The story began when the owner of Lowe’s Motor Speedway in the suburb of Concord decided to add a drag strip. The P&Z & the Council, due to pressure from a few homeowners near the track (and apparently illegally), changed his zoning to disallow drag strips. (http://www.jayski.com/pages/tracks/lowes.htm)
As a result, the speedway owner got mad and said he would raze the existing facility, which brings in millions to the local economy, and move to another city in the Charlotte area. To nobody's surprise, many great offers came in from other cities to help him to relocate into their community.
In damage control mode, the City of Concord eventually reversed their decision and has even been producing their own incentives to make up for their mistake. Though the outcome remains to be seen, they very well may lose their cash cow. At best they will have to make concessions to keep something they already had.
I'm not sure whether their initial decision was the right one--though it doesn't appear to be. The point is, local government decisions can have tremendous impacts.
What does this have to do with TABA? It is an extreme example of how local decisions can affect the economy and lifestyle of a community. One of our organization's biggest jobs is to stay on top of issues that can affect our communities and make people aware of the affects decisions can make on our economy and lifestyle.
We are very fortunate to have local officials, staff and citizens on boards that are conscientious of this and also fortunate to have an organization that does a good job of research and education to help people in charge make well informed decisions.
Along these lines, I would like to say thanks to Troy and the Home PAC for a great job with the Elected Officials Appreciation Night. I think it was the best one I have been to so far. What a great way to thank those people who are making these important decisions about our communities for their hard work day in and day out. Elliot Eisenberg also did a super job of educating our members and elected officials and their staff on the importance of building in our area. Great job guys!!
