Apologies for the 24 hour gap in dsc coverage - The Editor is taking a well-deserved break to celebrate his 50th birthday (yes he is only 50!) and the Deputy Editor was otherwise engaged yesterday with the commemoration of the first anniversary of the terrorist attrocities in London.

Fears Eased Over Road Atlanta

Rumours have been rife that the future of Road Atlanta was potentially at risk with local planning applications having been filed for residential developments perilously close to the Braselton Georgia track.

With major difficulties emerging for track after track in Europe, principally as a result of noise concerns raised by (usually a minority of) local residents the result of the planning application for the land surrounding the home of Petit Le Mans was awaited with baited breath.

It is then with very great pleasure that we can report that local planners have refused permission for residential development because it abuts Road Atlanta.

The plans were reportedly unanimously rejected by the local planning board. If approved the Atlanta developer planned to build more than 500 residential properties.

In a refreshing acknowledgement of the value of the Road Atlanta facility to the local economy a planning board member was quoted in the Gainesville Times as saying that it would be unfair to handcuff the race track in what it could do, something that “would happen” with the proposal.

Amongst racing folk that spoke at the hearing in opposition to the planning application were Dick Barbour and the circuit’s General Manager Brian Skuza who noted that the track furnishes 27 percent of the nearly $200 million spent annually in tourism in the county.