Group makes presentation to council about using airport
The issue of drag racing at the Osoyoos airport has been raised again.
Dean Martin, president of the Wine Capital Racing Association/Coachmasters Car Club spoke to Osoyoos council Feb. 21 about a proposal to allow auto racing events at the Osoyoos Airport.
I tabled an idea to seek permission to stage a drag racing event at the Oliver Airport, said Martin, a member of the local car club, The Coachmasters.
This idea was met with overwhelming enthusiasm. A racing committee was formed and we pursued establishment of a society under the Societies Act. The Wine Capital Racing Association was born.rnMartin went on to say Town of Oliver Economic Development Officer Patrick Deacon was supportive of the idea and pointed to similar programs on the Sunshine Coast and Vancouver Island.
In his research, Martin discovered that racing events on closed airports were presently under way in Sechelt, Port Alberni and Terrace, B.C.
And in Terrace Bay, Ontario, a racing program which began in 2001 attracted 10,000 spectators, with the car club donating $18,000 to local charities, including a $10,000 donation to their local hospital, Martin cited.
Their event was a three-day affair and included camping at the airport as well as impacting local hotels and restaurants.
In Terrace, B.C., their program started on a closed piece of local highway. In their third year, they were approached by the Terrace Airport Authority and were offered a runway for the event. Their inaugural event drew 150 participants and 4,000 spectators. This generated a one-day revenue of $22,100, said Martin.
Martin explained that when the Town of Oliver was approached with a similar proposal they were receptive to the idea and the Oliver Airport Authority recommended acceptance by a narrow margin.
However, the Town of Oliver approved only a one-time event to be held in the summer of 2003, citing incompatibility of this use of the airport with a planned residential airpark development at the Oliver Airport.
Due to insurance costs and infrastructure problems, we, as a club, abandoned our application for use of the airport in favour of a local road closure in the Oliver Industrial Park. This program was scaled back to single vehicle timed runs over a measured distance as opposed to two vehicle, side by side racing, Martin explained.
Using this format, three events were staged in June, September and October of 2004, the first held in conjunction with a car show on the Oliver ball fields.
Martin reported that all three events were successful and the 80 or so participants came from as far away as Omak, WA, Vancouver, Kamloops, Vernon, Chase, Kelowna, Midway, Penticton and Osoyoos.
The success of our events enabled us to purchase a professional starting line lighting system at a cost of over $7,000, said Martin.
It should be noted that the events have all been alcohol free and no problems have been encountered whatsoever. Furthermore, despite being in close proximity to residential property, not one noise complaint has been generated with the RCMP or the Town of Oliver.rnWhen news of Osoyoos' intention to pave the airport came to their attention, the racing association decided to investigate the possibility of hosting events at the airport. They propose a revenue sharing agreement and are also prepared to negotiate a percentage of the net revenue generated.
Martin cited street racing problems in Vancouver and added South Okanagan RCMP Staff Sgt. Walt Makepeace agreed that providing a legal outlet was a good approach.
Our original vision was to provide a legal outlet for street registered cars and thereby combat street racing, said Martin.
Our vision for the Osoyoos facility includes this component but we also see an opportunity to expand our program to include dedicated car races. The estimated 5,000-7,000 spectators and 150 participants could easily generate single-day revenues of $50,000 to $70,000 for a single event, added Martin.
We believe the economic spin-off from this endeavour will be a good one for all concerned and will benefit local businesses and make our streets a little safer.rnIn the future, Martin also hinted that the racing association would like to sponsor a scholarship to students pursuing the auto trade.
At the meeting, Martin was looking both for approval from council to hold drag racing events at the Osoyoos Airport and a promise to allow the event to continue for five to 10 years.
Osoyoos mayor and council agreed in principal to allow two events in September and October of 2005, promising to review the issue after the second event and only then talk about the future.
