Residents dismayed over racetrack president’s absence

Residents from New Kent’s Brickshire and surrounding communities gathered at the Brickshire Proprietor building on Jan. 23 with concerns for Colonial Downs president Ian Stewart and the racetrack’s permit request to host motorcycle racing.

But instead of speaking with citizens, Stewart opted to forgo the meeting, leaving more than 60 residents upset and angry over his no-show appearance. An announcement by District 4 New Kent Board of Supervisors representative Ron Stiers added more fuel to the fire.

“I received an e-mail from Ian and in it he said he would not be attending,” said Stiers. “Also, he said his lawyer has requested an amendment to the [racetrack’s] conditional use permit to include motorcycle racing as a cultural event. This proposal has been tabled to be discussed at the Board of Supervisors meeting on Jan. 28.”

The original request for a cultural events permit for allowing motorcycle race at Colonial Downs was rejected in early January by county zoning official Kenneth Vaughan. Now if supervisors see fit, they could forward the amendment request to the county’s Planning Commission.

The uproar and chain reaction of comments to follow exhibited shock and dismay over tactics taken by Colonial Downs. Residents protested, bursting out with comments that Colonial Downs was attempting to “back door” the community.

Brickshire’s homeowners’ board continued with the meeting, listening to residents and an outpouring of complaints and comments. Several spoke about the first experiences in the early 2000’s when Colonial Downs had its first set of motorcycle racing.

“At the time they said it was a one-time event, but I’m sure they’ll bring it again,” said Bill Leary.

Resident Donna Friend continued to voice her deep concerns that began at the Jan. 14 supervisors’ regular board meeting.

“We consider them a partner to the community,” she said. “But you don’t want something that causes windows and doors to vibrate.

“As a group, we need to be proactive, not reactive,” she concluded, speaking about forming a petition.

Charles Burton, a resident of Oakmont Villas, spoke about personal experiences and knowledge of events similar to what Colonial Downs wants to host.

“I have 35 to 40 years of racing bikes, cars, and boats,” he said. “I don’t and wouldn’t want any of that in my backyard.”

Judy Schwartz addressed the situation from her professional occupation viewpoint.

“As a realtor, I am afraid that I will have a problem trying to sell property in Brickshire,” she said. “As a property owner, I came to New Kent for peace and quiet.

“The county brings in $2 million in tax revenue from Brickshire,” she concluded.

Schwartz’s statement came on the back end of comments from a number of citizens saying that the one-day event proposed for April wouldn’t have a great financial impact for Colonial Downs.

Not all in attendance were opposed to the idea of having motorcycle racing at the prominent location.

“My husband and I are not opposed to it,” said Diane Armstrong. “I just wanted to come here to let people know that everybody is not adverse to it.”

Citizens began reemphasizing concerns over property values, noise levels, and Stewart’s absence. However, most were in agreement that they did not want to see Colonial Downs fail.

“The reason we are here is because it was suggested to me by him to address the citizens,” said Brickshire’s homeowner president Leo Vozel. “But he failed several times before.”

While Brickshire’s homeowner board cannot take a formal position on the issue, citizens vowed to make a petition and attend the Jan. 28 supervisors’ work session in support of denying an amendment to the permit.

Stiers reiterated his stance that he thought the Colonial Downs president should be in attendance.

“I am very disappointed Ian didn’t show,” said Stiers. “He could have put together a presentation and answered the citizens’ questions. I am very disappointed about the way Colonial Downs went about it.”