Canadian Motor Speedway
Canadian Motor Speedway is a motorsports park, currently stuck in development hell, that was planned to be built in Fort Erie, Ontario, Canada. The development would be located on an 821 acres adjacent to the Queen Elizabeth Way highway. It consists of a 1.2 kilometer progressive bank oval and 3.2 kilometer road course. With 65,000 seats and 40 suites, Canadian Motor Speedway would be the largest speedway in Canada and the second-largest sporting venue, in terms of seating capacity, in the country. Its location provides it with a large market area, being 6.4 kilometers from the Canada/USA border with Buffalo, N.Y. and 17 kilometers from Niagara Falls.
It is a hybrid development with aspects that would make it unique from other racetracks. It will have the two race courses as well as, Research and Development, Light Industrial and Commercial areas on the site. A specific objective is to develop relevance for motorsports through the initiatives of the Research and Development area, which concentrates on advancing fuels, materials and power train technologies, while augmenting environmental sustainability through a bio diversity initiative.
Further benefits from the development include providing a strong employment base, with a projected 730 operational jobs for the Speedway, R&D, Light Industrial and Commercial zones and 1,200 construction jobs over 21 months for the speedway and road course. Events would draw patrons from areas outside of the Niagara region to increase the number of tourists to the area. The result is a proposed new dollar economic impact of $400 million annually.
Daily activities would include R&D testing, road course track days, driver experience sessions on the oval, corporate team-building seminars/track time, charity fundraiser events, motocross and kart practice sessions, and snowmobile sessions in season. The Speedway would feature 10 summer weekend Special Events, under a permit from the Town of Fort Erie.
None of Canadian Motor Speedway's developers have been reachable since at least 2018. The speedway has until 2020 to begin construction before the government revokes the zoning privileges necessary for the project to go forth.
Design
Canadian Motor Speedway features many unique aspects for the racetrack layout and the total development. The design team will be led by 4-time NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion Jeff Gordon.The development is made up of three core areas, the oval and road course, centrally located, the research and development area to the south and east of the site, and the Commercial area to the north. The major parking and camping areas are located to the immediate west and southwest of the development.
One of the central design/development parameters is the 250 acre environmental element. A master planned biodiversity park will be employed to enhance sustainability and passive connectivity throughout the site. The current environmental features of the site are being increased with the remediation of the Miller's Creek corridor and the implementation of filter beds in constrained areas.
Speedway
Centering the layout will be a 1.2 km oval with progressive banking. It will feature the latest innovations in design and safety. The oval will have 60,000 grandstand seats, 5,000 club seats and 80 suites along its start/finish straight for spectators. The speedway has been pre-approved to expand to as many as 100,000 grandstand seats. Inside the oval will house the race garages, medical center and media center. The versatility of the infield will allow for a multitude of non-racing events including ice hockey, various winter sports, as well as concerts and other popular entertainment events.Road course
A multi-configuration road course is planned. The 3.2 km FIM/FIA track will incorporate the oval through tunnels in and out under the back straight of the oval. This design will be unique in providing a "stadium section" for the road course that will utilize the permanent seating of the oval. The elevations of the site will allow the spectators in the oval grandstand to see the oval section as well as the back section of the road course. A second configuration will separate from the oval, and use only the back section of the road course to allow the oval and back road course to be used independently. A 2nd paddock area will be built along the longest straight to accommodate the back course. The road course paddock area will also be the location of light industrial buildings for race teams and motorsport related shops.A CIK international grade karting facility is planned to allow regional and International karting at the facility.
Research and development
A Research and Development campus, in collaboration with McMaster University's Faculty of Engineering, Niagara College, and other education partners is to be constructed on the southern portion of the site. R&D activities performed will be related to the motorsport and automotive industries, such as prototype testing, design and development. This R&D Centre / Innovation Park portion of the development is limited to 80 acres by the Special Policy Area Zoning By-law. On July 7, 2014, a Memorandum of Understanding with Niagara College was signed to also explore the potential for CMS to host classes, co-op students and post-graduate placements in automotive power programs as well as hospitality, renewable technologies, innovation, media, business, and more.Commercial
A 74-acre commercial and retail area has been approved to the north of the site and will be a part of the second phase.Carbon neutral
The biodiversity plan, ties in with the theme of establishing a beneficial co-existence between the project and the environment. The development will employ proper forest management practices, to enhance the forest ecosystem, and increase the tree cover on the site by 80 acres. Canadian Motor Speedway will use grass parking areas to reduce the overall environmental impact and footprint, while enhancing the water quality systems that exist on the site. Canadian Motor Speedway will undertake initiatives to design, construct and operate the facility as the first carbon neutral track in the world.Development process
The Canadian Motor Speedway was conceptualized in 2005. Site selection and investment began in 2007. Previous attempts at a speedway in Niagara, were made by other individuals and failed primarily due to lack of resources, a workable business plan, and a flawed development strategy. A complete review of the business model coupled by the formulation of alliances with Jeff Gordon Inc., and other development partners resulted in an opportunity that would meet investor expectations while creating significant value for local communities in the area. Following 14 months of comprehensive studies, that included 22 reports, the planning submission for a special policy area was made to the Town of Fort Erie and Region of Niagara in February/March 2009.A public open house hosted by Canadian Motor Speedway was held on June 4, 2009, to introduce the project to the public. The first presentation to Fort Erie Town council came on September 8, 2009, with the report from town staff of the application to amend the Fort Erie Official Plan and Zoning By-law. Requests for recommendation reports on the Official Plan Amendment and Regional Official Plan Amendment were made on November 23, 2009, and November 25, 2009 respectively. On December 7, 2009 following a 6+ hour council meeting that had 59 delegations the Town of Fort Erie Council voted unanimously to approve the Official Plan Amendment. On December 9, 2009 the Region of Niagara council also voted unanimously to approve the Regional Official Plan Amendment. The by-laws to enact the amendments were passed on December 14 by the Town of Fort Erie and February 11, 2010 by the Region of Niagara.
On September 7, 2010 the planning staff of the Town of Fort Erie submitted a recommendation report No. CDS-048-10 to council to approve the re-zoning application, of Canadian Motor Speedway. The report was accepted and Fort Erie Town council voted unanimously to approve the re-zoning By-law No. 106-10 for the property for Canadian Motor Speedway after the third reading on September 13, 2010. The 821 acre site of the Canadian Motor Speedway is considered a Special Policy Area for the use of motorsport related activities.
Appeals against the development were taken to the Ontario Municipal Board for hearing in June 2012. A decision was rendered on November 5, 2012 to approve the development and allow it to proceed, with certain holding provisions, to the next stage in the development process.
On October 9, 2013, construction began for the initial re-development of Miller Creek - a significant environmental enhancement on the site. The speedway is now expected to be completed by 2017.
In the July 28, 2014 issue of Maclean's Magazine, an article about Canadian Motor Speedway appeared in the Economy section.
On September 11, 2014, Jeff Gordon was in Toronto for the 'Chase Across North America' Sprint Cup Championship media tour and spoke of Canadian Motor Speedway.
July 5, 2016 update: Failed land purchase adds more delays to speedway project. Developers now claim they will have a building permit by 2017. No completion date for the project has been offered lately by the developers, but Fort Erie mayor Wayne Redekop recently told Buffalo radio station WBFO, that the speedway could be open by either late 2018 or "the first quarter of 2019."
As of April 2018, development remained stalled. Developers refuse to build the speedway unless an exit ramp is constructed for it off the Queen Elizabeth Way, a proposal the Ontario government at the time opposed. The process remained completely stalled even after the change in government. In July 2019, the St. Catharines Standard attempted to follow-up with CMS officials regarding the project's status and was hung up on by all relevant parties. The speedway has until September 13, 2020—the date that the speedway's zoning waiver expires—to file for a building permit; if none is filed by then, the project will be forcibly canceled and the land will revert to being zoned for agriculture.