There are a few homes close to the strip, but most are over 2,000 feet from the starting line area. Consider that in this highly industrial area there are scrap yards, salvage yards, busy freight terminals, railroad yards, truck repair shops, a steel mill, and an international airport. And it’s all nicely nestled between the 210, 15, and 10 freeways – all major 24-7 high traffic freeways (for those unfamiliar with the area). The rail yards have diesel locomotives often idling for hours on end, and the Metrolink passenger trains pass through frequently and sound the whistle at nearby crossings. Additionally the strip is about 15 feet below the grade of the railroad making for somewhat of a natural sound barrier. So with all due respect to anyone living there, closing the drag strip is not going to change this area into a paradise by any stretch of the imagination.
What it is going to do is change my towing time from 1 hour to 3-1/2 hours to Famoso.
There are now *ZERO* quarter mile mile drag strips between about 100 miles north of LA to the Mexican border
On a sorta related note, the March Meet alone brings $5-6 million into Bakersfield's local economy. While Fontana doesn't draw that kind of spectators, the large races like the SPORTSnationals bring in a lot of cars, and the facility could host big races that would bring in a lot of spectators. But apparently Fontana doesn't want that money.
