Charlotte picked as site of NASCAR Hall of Fame, to open in 2009

By The Associated Press

Posted 5:20AM on Monday 6th March 2006 ( 19 years ago )

A Hall of Fame for NASCAR's greatest will be built in downtown Charlotte, within miles of the race shops and sprawling mansions that make the region an epicenter of the sport, NASCAR and city officials said Monday.The selection of Charlotte as the site for the $107.5 million hall ended a yearlong race against four other cities that saw the city's leaders and tourism officials campaign hard for an attraction expected to lure hundreds of thousands of NASCAR fans each year."In the end, you look at what's going to be best in the long run," NASCAR chairman Brian France told a crowd of about 1,000 people at the city's convention center. "I'm happy to tell you today the NASCAR Hall of Fame is going to be right here in Charlotte, North Carolina."Charlotte's proximity to the heart of the sport was cited repeatedly by supporters as a reason to put the hall in the city. Lowe's Motor Speedway, in suburban Concord, is home to the longest race on the Nextel Cup circuit, the Memorial Day weekend Coca-Cola 600, and has long hosted NASCAR's annual all-star race.Nearly all the top race teams are headquartered in the communities north of the city, and many top drivers own luxury condominiums in downtown Charlotte or palatial homes on nearby Lake Norman. Dale Earnhardt Jr., one of the series' most popular drivers, is among the drivers who live nearby and has said Charlotte should get the hall.In billboards and bumper stickers distributed as part of the city's campaign for the hall, officials boasted, "Racing was built here. Racing belongs here" and "We Eat, Sleep & Breathe Racing."The news came as a disappointment to finalists Daytona Beach, Fla., and Atlanta, where city and state leaders hoped the sought-after attraction would become an anchor of the city's downtown tourism initiative."As a guy, I'm disappointed. They decided to marry the girl next door," said Georgia Gov. Sonny Perdue. "We had a lot to offer. It could have been a great marriage."Felix Sabates, who with fellow team owner Rick Hendrick helped spearhead Charlotte's campaign, said the deal was completed Friday after negotiations between the city and NASCAR that went late into the night Wednesday and Thursday. Officials were expected to take the package to the city council for approval at a Monday evening meeting.Sports marketing experts have described the hall as a once-in-a-generation opportunity to spur tourism among NASCAR's famously loyal fan base. Richmond, Va., and Kansas City, Kan. also submitted bids for the hall, but were cut from the field earlier this year."Clearly, as a track promoter, we had a lot to benefit by this facility being built on track property," said Robin Braig, president of Daytona International Speedway. "It would've been a great show for us, but we'll rebound from it."Under NASCAR's deal with Charlotte, ground is to be broken by the spring of 2007, with opening scheduled for no later than March 31, 2010. City officials said Monday they hoped to open the hall sometime in 2009.The hall is to be owned by the city of Charlotte and operated by its convention and visitors bureau under a contract with NASCAR that runs into 2038. In return, the city is to pay unspecified royalties to NASCAR, plus between 5 and 10 percent of various revenue streams. Royalty payments will be deferred if the hall doesn't make a profit.The deal also gives NASCAR a 180-day option to commit to building a 300,000-square-foot office building as part of the Hall of Fame development, under a 99-year lease that would cost NASCAR just $1 a year. Sources have said an agreement on that part of the development was one of the final sticking points in negotiations between the city and NASCAR.That part of the deal is almost certain to revive speculation that NASCAR plans to move its headquarters from Daytona Beach to Charlotte. France said before last month's Daytona 500 that no such move is planned, something officials in Florida said NASCAR assured them Monday."The good news coming out of today is that NASCAR headquarters is not going to be moving from Daytona Beach," said George Mirabal, president of the Daytona Beach/Halifax-area chamber of commerce.Charlotte touted its proposal with architectural drawings by I.M. Pei, noted designer of the famous pyramid addition to the Louvre in Paris and the east wing of Washington's National Gallery. Those drawings are dominated by a banked curve that encircles the building, evoking the shape of a speedway. Over the main plaza entrance to the museum, the curve twists over on itself, in the manner of a Mobius strip.From one corner of the building, a latticework tower emblazoned with the NASCAR logo rises, reminiscent of the towers that display race standings from the infield of most speedways.The project also is to include a new $43 million ballroom for the adjacent Charlotte Convention Center.___AP Motorsports Writer Jenna Fryer in Charlotte, and Associated Press writers Travis Reed in Orlando and Errin Haines in Atlanta contributed to this report.

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