A proposed dirtbike inner-city dirtbike track in Cleveland, Ohio, that could have been a watershed moment in land use for the sport, isn’t going to happen now.
Gee, no surprises there.
In a story posted today on cleveland.com, author Mark Naymik reported that the $2.4 million project that was supported by Cleveland Mayor Frank Jackson and the Cleveland City Council in an effort to curb the illegal “dirt biking” that is being done in the streets of Cleveland has been scrapped. The story cites many of the usual concerns that affect such a bold proposal, such as noise, congestion and insurance hassles, but CBS affiliate television station Cleveland 19 also aired a report that the land, known as Marion Motley Park on East 72nd Street and Carson Avenue, has also tested for high levels of hazardous pollutants such as lead, arsenic and other carcinogenic compounds.
Mayor Jackson said in the story that he remains committed to building a facility where dirtbike riders and stunters can go and legally ride their motorcycles, presumably thus getting them off of city streets and avoiding hassles with the law. With Marion Motley Park now disqualified as a potential site, Jackson said that new plans include the possibility of making a local municipal parking lot available for stunt riders while the city seeks another site for a dirtbike track. The original site was intended to have both a dirtbike track and a paved area for stunt riding, but Jackson said that the new plan calls for separate venues for dirtbikers and stunt riders.
According to the story, Jackson has long argued that the city must tackle the problem of illegal urban riding, and that the city needs to look beyond building traditional sports courts and facilities–of which a dirtbike track certainly doesn’t fit the mold. He states that, despite its current illegal status on city streets, “urban kids have created a new sport.”
The dirtbike track is clearly a political flashpoint in the upcoming mayoral election, as evidenced by the rhetoric in the video below.
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