By Jessie Burchette
Salisbury Post
SPENCER ó Finding a silver lining in tons of sludge, High Rock Raceway held its official groundbreaking Tuesday.
A Charlotte marketing firm, the Maxim Agency, sent out press releases to dozens of media outlets in multiple states announcing the official groundbreaking for the world’s first ‘green’ racetrack and the state’s first 2-mile-plus road course.
“It’s not a big ceremony,” David L. Risdon, the track’s chief operating officer, said via phone from the Charlotte airport, where he had just arrived Tuesday. “We’ve got guys working over there. We’re celebrating. … We got our sludge permit.”
Crews and machinery from FC Development of Statesville returned to the site to begin work. Work on the site halted in November when the county got a restraining order.
Risdon also acknowledged that a story posted on the High Rock Raceway Web site for about two weeks was an error.
The story indicated that billionaire Sir Richard Branson, the owner of Virgin Airlines, was a partner in the race track venture.
Risdon said that report came from a television station and somehow ended up on the Web site. “He (Branson) is not a partner,” said Risdon. The story has been removed from the Web site.
Risdon added that developers are working to form a strong relationship with Virgin Airlines to provide charter flights.
Risdon and his company, High Rock Properties, are under a court order that prohibits further grading on the nearly 200-acre site until required plans are submitted and approved by the county or state.
The project ran afoul of county and state laws when grading and sludge removal at the former N.C. Finishing (Color-tex) location started without plans or permits.
In mid-December, the N.C. Department of Environment and Natural Resources approved a permit to allow work on restoring wetlands in a 2- to 3-acre area that was previously disturbed in an effort to remove a 2006 sludge spill.
On Jan. 8, the state agency notified Risdon that his latest sludge removal plan had been approved. Two large lagoons used by the textile mills had a combined capacity of 10 million gallons. Over the years since the mill closed, the liquids have turned to sludge.
The state agency has given Risdon until Aug. 1 to complete the removal of sludge from the site and Aug. 4 to provide documentation that everything has been done correctly. The state is requiring testing of the sludge and wastewater.
In the letter, Andrew Pitner, supervisor at the Department of Environment and Natural Resources’ Mooresville office, warned Risdon that failure to comply with the conditions of the sludge removal permit could subject the project to a $25,000-a-day fine as well as criminal penalties.
Risdon said Tuesday that it will likely take months to deal with the sludge, which will be hauled to a landfill adjacent to Lowes Motor Speedway in Concord.
“We have plenty of work now,” said Risdon, adding that he wants to get started on the comprehensive erosion-control plan for the entire project.
Approval of that plan is necessary to allow grading to start on the road course.
Risdon said he hopes to have the erosion plan submitted and approved by the time the sludge removal project is complete.
The groundbreaking press release cited High Rock Raceway’s commitment to make all commercial and residential buildings meet “North Carolina HealthyBuilt Homes” guidelines and showcase construction materials technology designed to reduce consumption and minimize environmental impact.
“From recycled paper for the hot dog wrappers to free track resources for companies developing alternative full- and low-emission vehicle technology, High Rock Raceway is committed to its mission of ‘green racing,’ ” Risdon said.
Contact Jessie Burchette at 704-797-4254 or jburchette @salisburypost.com.