The Loudon Planning Board Thursday night approved the speedway’s request for a modified site plan which will allow the Feb. 20-21 event to take place.
A conditional approval was granted for a one-year trial for the event, which falls outside the April 1-October 31 window for events at the speedway which was part of the conditions set by the planning board when it approved a 9,000 seat expansion of the speedway in 1999.
The event is expected to draw 5,000 people each day and will be held in a parking lot south of the grandstand, according to speedway officials. It will feature snocross races as well as ice drag races and freestyle jumping.
An overflow crowd was at hand for the Thursday night meeting held at the "Charlie’s Barn’’ meeting room next to the town office building, Many of those attending were from nearby Canterbury. A large contingent attended from the Sno-Shakers Snowmobile Club, which is helping organize the event.
Concerns were expressed over noise from the snowmobile races and heavy traffic on snowmobile trails in the area over the weekend.
John Zudell, vice president of operations and development at the speedway, said the event will be closely monitored in order to address concerns raised by nearby residents of both Loudon and Canterbury and said no racing will take place before 9 a.m. or after 4 p.m. over the weekend.
Jeffrey Fullerton of Acentech, a firm hired by the speedway to conduct a noise study, said that a recent test of noise levels showed that the snowmobiles would produce an average of 62 decibels of sound 2,500 feet from the track, which was less than the noise from car traffic.
The study was questioned by Hilary Nelson of Canterbury, who said that the same firm’s 1999 study showed that with a 15 mph wind from the east, the noise heard at Shaker Village, more than a mile from the speedway, would be the same 95 decibel level being heard in the track’s grandstand.
Three members of the Sno-Shakers club who are also planning board members, including chairman Tom Dow, declined to recuse themselves from the discussion and vote.
"I haven’t participated in any of the discussions with the speedway about the event and the town’s legal counsel has said I can take part,’’ said Dow, who is vice president of the club.
