How long before the NIMBYs get Donington closed?
Discussion
If this development goes ahead?
BBC article said:
Plans to build a new town near East Midlands Airport have been submitted.
The long-mooted community, called Isley Woodhouse, could see 4,250-homes, a secondary and two primary schools, shops, hotels, leisure centre and sports facilities built on farmland to the south west of the airport.
The long-mooted community, called Isley Woodhouse, could see 4,250-homes, a secondary and two primary schools, shops, hotels, leisure centre and sports facilities built on farmland to the south west of the airport.
I wouldn't be too pessimistic. Circuits have to rub along with thur neighbours and most Nimby incidents I can recall involve circuits breaking their planning permission conditions - Mallory was a classic example. And we are all potential nimbies - it just depends what is annoying us in our own back yards .
A more insidious problem is taht most folk who profess an interest in racing mean they watch F1and BTCC on the TV . All motor sport is bets enjoyed live.
Must dash - setting off on the 120miles to Oulton Park when this tea is finished !
A more insidious problem is taht most folk who profess an interest in racing mean they watch F1and BTCC on the TV . All motor sport is bets enjoyed live.
Must dash - setting off on the 120miles to Oulton Park when this tea is finished !
FredericRobinson said:
Anyone who s camped at Donington knows how often and how low the planes go over right through the night, the noise from the track will be nothing compared to that.
Exactly, I read that almost half of East Midlands flights occur at night (thanks mainly to freight movements), so the airport noise is pretty much going to be non-stop. Traffic on the M1 and A42 should add a nice background hum, too.Those new houses will need a lot of sound insulation.
C69 said:
Exactly, I read that almost half of East Midlands flights occur at night (thanks mainly to freight movements), so the airport noise is pretty much going to be non-stop. Traffic on the M1 and A42 should add a nice background hum, too.
Those new houses will need a lot of sound insulation.
I’m amazed anyone wants to live near an airport that has night flights, and lots of them, but there’s plenty of new builds round Castle Donington so apparently they do Those new houses will need a lot of sound insulation.
bergclimber34 said:
The fact it is near an airport says it all, track will be fine unless Palmer is making no money out of it and might sell it, the rumoured posh car club with track access has not gone anywhere has it.
The conversion of Donington Hall in to a hotel is ongoing, although behind schedule. A road has been built (or more correctly reinstated) between the Hall & a new gate in the circuit perimeter fence near old hairpin.Edited by andy97 on Tuesday 29th July 06:45
Castellet said:
East Midlands will inevitably get busier.
And I ve heard it said that departing and arriving aircraft deposit emissions on the track, which can make it more slippery when wet.
The infield definitely lends itself to some appropriate development - but definitely not housing.
Virtually impossible to develop Donington Park in to anything else (housing, industrial etc) due to it being so close to the end of the runway. A plane has come down on the circuit in the past (albeit about 30 years ago) & there are strict planning rules as to what can or cannot be built that close to the thresholds.And I ve heard it said that departing and arriving aircraft deposit emissions on the track, which can make it more slippery when wet.
The infield definitely lends itself to some appropriate development - but definitely not housing.
FredericRobinson said:
I m amazed anyone wants to live near an airport that has night flights, and lots of them, but there s plenty of new builds round Castle Donington so apparently they do
I live in Castle Donington & moved here because of the race track (ok, a lady was involved, too! But I am a regular spectator and competitor at the circuit) the airport noise at night is no bother at all.What I will say about the race track & the airport is that:
1. The track noise plan is very closely monitored with direct links of the noise monitoring kit to the local council so breaches are recorded. As long as the circuit (& the people that use it) stick to the existing planning permission rules, there should be no threat. It s difficult to close something down when it is operating within the long agreed planning conditions. New developments are a different matter as new conditions can be imposed.
2. People who know that their cars are too loud but think it s ok to lift off near the noise monitors are selfish & threatening the circuits future. The fixed noise monitors are sometimes supplemented by mobile noise monitoring equipment & I have seen (presumably) officials at race meetings with noise meters wandering around the circuit.
3. The difference between the race track noise & the airport noise is that there is a constant noise from the track during operating hours whereas there are long gaps between take offs & landings with just 18% runway utilisation on average over a 24 hour period so some quite long quiet periods.
4. The airport employs about 6000 people so people give it some slack.
5. Because of the airport & track, house prices tend to be a bit lower and the village has facilities that it might otherwise not have (like good public transport links and a post office!)
6. The biggest issue with the potential new town development will probably be the pressure on the local road system rather than noise threats to Donington Park
Edited by andy97 on Tuesday 29th July 06:48
I also think this why not big series are likely there, thecroad links care tough, thry have a huge music festival there yearly must be a nightmare for locals, if you did this with 2 or 3 other huge dates it might start to cause issues.
Main worry is if it doesn't make money, Palmer is a good guardian, but he bought this possibly at a bargain price to prevent it closing, shrewd, but he is a businessman who has tried to sell Bedford for housing I the past, it is not beyond the realms if the track is not profitable, I would imagine the airport would happily use it for storage
Main worry is if it doesn't make money, Palmer is a good guardian, but he bought this possibly at a bargain price to prevent it closing, shrewd, but he is a businessman who has tried to sell Bedford for housing I the past, it is not beyond the realms if the track is not profitable, I would imagine the airport would happily use it for storage
Donington 's main problem is awful viewing and lack of attendance . I first went in 1978 and it was fabulous - I saw F3 ,F2 and F3000, as well as Gp C , DTM and the legendary Grand Prix . Its USP was great viewing , where the track , especially at Redgate , Craner and Old Hairpin was close enough to offer a proximity which Silverstone had lost years earlier . The lovely park surroundings and mature trees helped , and the museum was an added draw .
All was well until Tom Wheatcroft died and the absurd plans were hatched to make it a modern F1 circuit. Cue utter chaos - acres of earthworks, felled trees and huge run offs. The museum had become a joke , half full of Kevin's hideous Nazi rubbish and the rest was neglected and sloppy (awful, mistake strewn signage , and leaden displays of wonderful cars).
JP has done a great job in resuscitating Donington but the absurd run offs remain - where once I was 25 yards from F2 cars I'm now 75 yards away from Fiestas . And where are the locals ? I was at Oulton Park on Saturday and as usual it was well attended , with an ever strong local support. But Donington can feel like a ghost town some days .
All was well until Tom Wheatcroft died and the absurd plans were hatched to make it a modern F1 circuit. Cue utter chaos - acres of earthworks, felled trees and huge run offs. The museum had become a joke , half full of Kevin's hideous Nazi rubbish and the rest was neglected and sloppy (awful, mistake strewn signage , and leaden displays of wonderful cars).
JP has done a great job in resuscitating Donington but the absurd run offs remain - where once I was 25 yards from F2 cars I'm now 75 yards away from Fiestas . And where are the locals ? I was at Oulton Park on Saturday and as usual it was well attended , with an ever strong local support. But Donington can feel like a ghost town some days .
If Donington is financially viable then I don't see any reason to sell, it's one of the best circuits in the UK steeped in years of history.
If it isn't making money then there's an issue.
That aside, if the proposed new housing development went ahead there's an airport to contend with and as long as Donington sticks to the events it is permitted to run I think it will be fine. Croft as I recall had a run in some years ago because they were running more events than their permits allowed and it was touch and go for a while.
If it isn't making money then there's an issue.
That aside, if the proposed new housing development went ahead there's an airport to contend with and as long as Donington sticks to the events it is permitted to run I think it will be fine. Croft as I recall had a run in some years ago because they were running more events than their permits allowed and it was touch and go for a while.
Croft issues are well documented and came initially from a disgruntled ex employee I think.
Same as Malloryvwho maybe have 10 or more race dates a year now but God knows how many ards, driver and training days.
Their issue was running a motocross track really.
If you recall Donington tried this aswell...
I love the place, compared to the soulless, unfriendly money machine that is Silverstone, but the guy above is right, getting a crowd on there is tough at times.
Same as Malloryvwho maybe have 10 or more race dates a year now but God knows how many ards, driver and training days.
Their issue was running a motocross track really.
If you recall Donington tried this aswell...
I love the place, compared to the soulless, unfriendly money machine that is Silverstone, but the guy above is right, getting a crowd on there is tough at times.
bergclimber34 said:
I also think this why not big series are likely there, thecroad links care tough, thry have a huge music festival there yearly must be a nightmare for locals, if you did this with 2 or 3 other huge dates it might start to cause issues.
Main worry is if it doesn't make money, Palmer is a good guardian, but he bought this possibly at a bargain price to prevent it closing, shrewd, but he is a businessman who has tried to sell Bedford for housing I the past, it is not beyond the realms if the track is not profitable, I would imagine the airport would happily use it for storage
Oh i think it makes money. Palmer knows how to run a business.Main worry is if it doesn't make money, Palmer is a good guardian, but he bought this possibly at a bargain price to prevent it closing, shrewd, but he is a businessman who has tried to sell Bedford for housing I the past, it is not beyond the realms if the track is not profitable, I would imagine the airport would happily use it for storage
As for “no big series”, are World Super Bikes not big enough for you? Big crowds there. Other big events are British Superbikes, BTCC, “ Convoy in the Park” (truck racing - not my thing but get V good crowds) & even the 2 rallies draw pretty decent crowds in the winter
Edited by andy97 on Tuesday 29th July 19:10
As others have said, DHL have flights in and out of East Midlands 24 hours a day. Certainly, the one around 3:15am seems to wake me up most nights.
It never used to be this bad. I'll bet the future estate agents focus attention on the circuit to avoid people realising the airport never shuts.
It never used to be this bad. I'll bet the future estate agents focus attention on the circuit to avoid people realising the airport never shuts.
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