Revised design considered for Raceway subdivision

A proposal to build a subdivision on acreage where the landmark Raceway Park operates is back on the Flathead County Planning Board agenda for a May 10 public hearing.

The plan by owner Thornton Motorsports LLC to change the zoning on the 40-acre Raceway Park facility from agricultural to residential zoning to accommodate a 57-lot subdivision has drawn concerns about a number of issues from the Riverdale Land Use Advisory Committee, the Planning Board and the county commissioners.

If approved, Raceway Park would be closed and homes would be built where the race track has operated for decades. The proposed development would be called Montana Raceway Subdivision.

“The proposed development would likely have a positive impact on the neighborhood because the property currently operates as a professional racetrack and has been a source of contention in the neighborhood for many years,” the planning staff report states.

In February the commissioners tabled the zoning request until a new planned-unit development overlay is presented. The Planning Board earlier had tabled the planned-unit development request, and the land-use committee did not make a recommendation on the planned-unit development because concerns regarding lack of a secondary access, density, stormwater runoff, perimeter fencing between the subdivision and nearby Majestic Valley Arena property, proximity to the county landfill and impacts on farming in that area.

A planned-unit development is a zoning overlay meant to encourage more efficient use of land and public services. It allows a developer to have more flexibility of subdivision design, density and land uses.

Thornton Motorsports has revised its application and increased the open space and parkland within the subdivision from 2.3 acres to 7.3 acres, with 4 acres as dedicated park space.

All lots would be served by a public water supply system served by two new wells and individual septic systems with a common drain field.

The owner is still proposing only one primary access via McDermott Road, but would widen the road and install a divided median.

The Planning Board will meet at 6 p.m. Wednesday, May 10, on the second-floor of the Earl Bennett Building, 1035 First Ave. W., Kalispell.

For more information, visit https://flathead.mt.gov/planning_zoning/events.php.

Features editor Lynnette Hintze may be reached at 758-4421 or lhintze@dailyinterlake.com.