CHESTERFIELD COUNTY, Va. (WRIC) — Plans are moving forward to bring racing back to life at the abandoned Southside Speedway in Chesterfield County.
At a board meeting on Wednesday, Dec. 13, the Chesterfield County Board of Supervisors requested the Economic Development Authority (EDA) to opt into a proposal that would resurrect the iconic Southside Speedway.
“The board unanimously directs the Chesterfield County Economic Development Authority to enter in negotiations for a ten-year ground lease purchase and master plan with Competitive Racing Investments LLC to renew racing at southside speedway,” Supervisor Chris Winslow said.
In recent years, residents voiced concerns about the future of the speedway. In September, an EDA spokesperson said that if the speedway is reopened, it would need to be able to operate and make money.
“There’s a lot of desire to have it back, but it needs to be back and take care of itself,” Chesterfield EDA Director Garrett Hart said in September.
After bouts of speculation, resident-backed movements and racing enthusiasts fighting to restore the shuttered track, Chesterfield County’s Board of Supervisors formally recommended the EDA a submitted proposal for the 47-acre property that would resurrect the speedway.
According to Winslow, the negotiations also cite an indoor soccer facility containing eight to ten multi-use fields will be built in response to the third-party Athletic Facility Gap Analysis and the 288/Genito Special Focus Area Plan recently obtained by the county.
To Kevin Carroll, Matoaca District Supervisor, this movement has been a long time coming.
“We absolutely look forward to a time where the racetrack is back open [and] we have racing again in Chesterfield County,” Carroll said. “So, I wish as we move forward on this, all of the success.”
Now, it is up to the EDA to review and discuss the letters of intent they have received — taking into consideration the Board of Supervisors’ recommendation. These discussions will take place at their next meeting on Thursday, Dec. 21.
