FOR MORE INFORMATION:
Focus: Tamworth press coordinator: 
Kate Vachon
603 323 8224
focus@focustamworth.org

Focus: Tamworth looks for an explanation of sudden application withdrawal

(TAMWORTH, NH, August 25, 2004)

Watchdog group Focus: Tamworth tonight gave the Tamworth Planning Board a letter requesting that the board ask Club Motorsports to explain the sudden withdrawal of its application for a Special Use Permit under Tamworth’s Wetlands Ordinance.

The Planning Board had set tonight for a hearing on the application, which was postponed from July so that surrounding towns could be notified and allowed to give their input. But on Monday, Club Motorsports Inc, the Derry developer that wants to build a racetrack for fast cars and motorcycles on the north side of Mt Whittier in Tamworth, suddenly withdrew its application.

About 125 people attended the meeting at the Brett School. The meeting lasted only long enough for chair David Goodson to announce the withdrawal of the application, and no public input was allowed.

“We are stunned by this development. If CMI’s developers think they don’t need this permit, let them say so and tell us why they think they’re exempt. If they want to amend the application because it is flawed, they should say that, and tell us what they plan to change. They mention new information in their press release, but don’t say what it is,” said David Little, a member of the Focus: Tamworth steering committee, after the meeting. 

“CMI might have avoided this problem by consulting with the Tamworth Conservation Commission or the Planning Board about the Tamworth Wetlands Ordinance before they submitted their application, but we see no evidence that they did that. 

“We’re hoping for some explanation of this turn of events,” Little said. “Meanwhile, we will continue work to be sure that this proposed development conforms to all local regulations, including the Tamworth Wetlands Ordinance.”

Focus: Tamworth is a coalition of local residents who support careful and fair regulations that protect Tamworth’s economic and natural resources. More information on Focus: Tamworth is available at www.focustamworth.org.

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NOTE TO EDITORS: the Tamworth Wetlands Ordinance is available at http://www.focustamworth.org/Tamworth%20Wetlands%20Ordinance.pdf.