Published August 2004

NASCAR debate could use dose of civility

Let’s hope the residents of north Snohomish County, elected officials and merchants are still civil and neighborly long after the decision is made on the proposed International Speedway Corp. track for NASCAR races north of Marysville.

Whether the ISC waves a checkered flag at Snohomish County’s site later this year or favors a competing proposal elsewhere in the Northwest, the NASCAR track opportunity is already pitting residents against each other and against some of their elected representatives who have become involved in the often heated discussions about the perceived benefits of the multimillion-dollar project.

North Snohomish County seems destined to be one of the hottest development spots in one of the state’s fastest growing counties. The current population of more than 600,000 people is expected to surpass a million residents in less than two decades. North county’s still-open spaces will attract much of that growth — more homes, more roads, more businesses, schools, medical facilities and recreation centers.

Already, that growth is particularly evident in Marysville, Arlington and its Smokey Point neighborhood. The expansive development of the Tulalip Tribes’ Quil Ceda Village alone will bring several million visitors to the area as it builds out its planned shopping centers, adds a hotel to its casino and perhaps a major amusement park.

The NASCAR track is a large-scale development that would dramatically impact the area’s future — but so would hundreds of homes, light industrial parks and office buildings with thousands of cars clogging the area’s roads daily.

That’s what that 600-acre racetrack site is zoned for now, not for agricultural development.

But whether the track comes now or other development comes later, there will be plenty of future projects — both public and private — that will generate both support and opposition. In light of that, the NASCAR proposal is a great opportunity to learn how to work together in evaluating future growth decisions.

County Executive Aaron Reardon, Marysville Mayor Dennis Kendall, Arlington Mayor Margaret Larson, the Greater Marysville Tulalip Chamber of Commerce and the Snohomish County Economic Development Council have used the NASCAR project positively by working together to present a coordinated proposal to the ISC, all hoping for a major economic development that would create new jobs and tax revenues.

Still, there’s no need for derogatory personal attacks, such as Reardon’s public statements that Seattle talk-show host Mike Siegel is “not trustworthy” and that he would not “go on a talk show with a guy who used to chase little green men, crop circles and flying saucers” — referring to Reardon’s decision to decline an invitation to a public program in June hosted by Snohomish County Citizens Against the Racetrack (SCAR).

In fairness, Reardon turned down a similar meeting invitation from the pro-track group, Fans United for NASCAR (FUN). But attendance at both meetings — as county executive — would have shown an interest in exchanging information, without labeling his position as “pro” or “con” by his presence at either group. Both State Rep. Kirk Pearson and Arlington City Councilman Dan Anderson appeared at the SCAR meeting as elected officials.

In late July, the FUN group publicly unveiled a survey it commissioned by Portland’s Moore Information. The spokesperson for the group, EDC President Deborah Knutson, said the telephone interviews with 350 randomly chosen voters showed 64 percent “backed the track.”

Despite the survey’s show of support, in north Snohomish County there is still growing distrust and stereotyping among neighbors. During chatter among FUN members before the July survey meeting, one woman objected to being characterized as a “beer drinking NASCAR fan,” saying she doesn’t even drink. Another said she wrote a letter to a newspaper in support of the track and “the next morning I found a bag of dog poop left at my gate.”

Economic development of any kind draws predictable responses from everyone with a vested interest — from property owners, people seeking jobs, government officials and residents who fear changes in their property values and lifestyles. But how differences of opinion and exchanges of information are handled during the process of economic development will create either trust, unity and communication or distrust, disunity and misinformation.

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