WAITSBURG – More than 35 people attended a Jan. 6 community forum to learn more about the Waitsburg Raceway proposed by Walla Walla resident Brandon Kelly. Kelly hopes to convert the horse race track at the Waitsburg fairgrounds to a compacted dirt car race track.

Kelly had received tentative approval from the Waitsburg city council at their Dec. 16 meeting, but the council wanted to run it past the community before signing a lease contract. During the December meeting, council members remarked positively about the opportunity to make use of the largely unused fairgrounds facilities, and were optimistic about the potential benefits an influx of racers and fans could have on local businesses.

The one-year trial lease would allow Kelly to implement his plan of holding monthly car races, from May through September, with a demolition derby during Waitsburg Celebration Days. Kelly would be personally responsible for removing the inner horse track guardrail, widening the track, and installing a three-layer safety barrier. He would pay for law enforcement and fire/EMS services at the events, which would include occasional dances. He would also obtain liability insurance.

Residents grilled Kelly for more than an hour, questioning everything from noise and dust, to Kelly’s experience in designing race tracks, parking issues, and potential liability to the city. About one-third of the crowd appeared to be racers or track supporters who remained largely silent.

Robert Loper of Dayton commented, saying he was “totally comfortable” with Kelly’s plan and that he thought it would be a great thing for the area. Gary Phillips said he had raced Elgin, a small community, and didn’t remember ever seeing dust or dirt on the clay base track.

Many of the residents in attendance live in homes surrounding the track and expressed concern about noise and dust. Kelly said that all cars would be required to meet a 98 decibel muffler rating in order to race and that the compacted dirt and clay track would not make dust.

Resident Denise Winnet, a self-professed race fan who lives near the fairgrounds, asked the council to consider their decision carefully.

“We moved to the neighborhood knowing there was going to be horse races, horse poop, pig poop, dances, weddings, motorcycles . . . and that’s all good,” Winnet said. “But we’re talking 500 cars and 30 hours of construction to get the track together. There will be dust.”

She added, “When we had the wonderful four-wheeler event, there was so much dust on the road by the pig barns that you couldn’t even see. It’s just a fact. Unless you’re running a water truck all the time, we’re going to be eating dust,” she said.

Winnett asked the council to consider the impact on Kelly Mohney’s sheep in the field adjoining the fairgrounds, and commented on the “treacherous” one-way fairgrounds corner entry, with no sidewalks and lights.

“Just take into consideration all these things that will change the tone of why I live where I live,” she said.

When asked at what decibel rating someone would be picked up for excess noise, Walla Walla County Sheriff John Turner said there was no specific rating. He said there is a county noise ordinance, that doesn’t apply to the City of Waitsburg, which pertains to “loud parties and those types of things.”

Eric Hockersmith said that state regulations supersede county jurisdiction and list 90 decibels as excessive. He also acknowledged there are exemptions for activities like races, with proper permitting.

“What’s the plan for compliance under the Washington State environmental policy?” Hockersmith asked. He went on to say that construction activity that changes the environment must go under review.

“There’s a process. Talk to the DEQ. I talked to them today,” he added.

Waitsburg resident Karen Gregutt asked how many cars would be on the track at a time and Kelly said there could be from 10 to 15 racing at once.

“We have a funnel effect in Waitsburg that we already experience when we have football games, or the pig roast, or anything else,” said resident Chris Halley. “Everyone in town hears the noises from just a small group. A thousand people and ten cars running at 90 decibels is going to be a loud noise, I don’t care how you cut it.”

Halley is also concerned about the type of crowd the races would draw.

“It is not a nice crowd. They are not family-friendly and they are loud and boisterous,” she said.

Chris’ husband, Randy Halley, raced for years and expressed similar feelings. He asked what kind of racers Kelly was targeting, saying that if they are with an organization and drive a more expensive car they will be more likely to police themselves.

“If all it is is the demo derby crowd that races then I’m not for it at all. You might want to control them, but it doesn’t happen. It’s the other racers that need to put the thumb on it,” he said.

Halley added, “If all you have is a bunch of guys throwing a car together – and there’s nothing wrong with that, that’s what the demo derby and that kind of thing is there for – but if that’s all they’re here for they get pissed, they get drunk, and there’s very little you can do about the experience that the people that are there get – and the town. Because when they get tossed out of here, they get tossed out into the town.”

Kelly said there would be several race classes and that expensive cars won’t be thrown in with beginners. He said he has talked with drivers that race at top-name tracks but that there will probably be some derby drivers as well.

“I know who they are, though, and I’m not going to put up with that kind of behavior. I want this to be a fun, family-friendly community event,” Kelly said.

Sheriff Turner said the Sheriff’s Office is working with Kelly on a supplemental contract and explained how those work and are approved.

“If the community wants an event we do all we can to pull it off so people can have the kind of community they want to have,” he said. Turner said that there are still some questions to be answered and that “beer gardens are a big deal.”

Gregutt asked how Kelly envisioned the track benefitting the town and asked if it would be possible to run a trial race to see just how loud the cars are.

Kelly said his goal is to bring to town people who will also use the town’s stores and restaurants and to allow fundraising groups to sell food and other goods at the races. He said he can’t run a trial race because his initial investment will cost him about $135,000.

Kelly continued to field questions such as how the town’s businesses would benefit if groups like the Lion’s Club served hamburgers at the track, how he could prevent a fire if a hot car part flew into the neighboring wheat field, where he intended to park the 1,000 cars that might turn up at a race, and what qualified him to design a race track.

Councilor K.C. Kuykendall, who missed the December council meeting, said he was surprised that the council decided to take action on the proposal at the Jan. 20 meeting.

“I’m not in favor of us making that decision prematurely,” Kuykendall said. “It seems like there’s a lot of information that needs to be brought from an idea stage to a legal, binding, proposal stage, including copies of contracts, engineering design drawings, traffic management and safety plans, copies of insurance riders, bond qualifications, if the race is sanctioned.

“If you’re talking about ponying up 100k just to prep the track, it makes sense for you to pony up 10 percent of that and get some of these concerns addressed, which I know you can do, and bring them in so I can make a decision not based off a nice guy’s verbal promise,” Kuykendall added.

Mayor Gobel called the meeting and said the discussion would be picked up at the next council meeting. “Nothing says we’ll make a decision at our next meeting even though that was planned. If one council member requests that we table it, that’s the way it will be,” he said.

Waitsburg’s next city council meeting is at 7 p.m. on Jan. 20, at the Lions Memorial Building at the Waitsburg fairgrounds.