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Town reviews lease request to use buyout floodplain for radio-controlled car track
Summary
Town officials reviewed an application to lease a buyout floodplain parcel adjacent to Pineola for a radio-controlled car dirt track. The town manager said state and FEMA approvals are required and deed restrictions prohibit impermeable surfaces or permanent structures.
Town manager reported that Mike Nelson, an adjacent property owner, has applied to lease a floodplain buyout parcel next to the laundromat on Pineola to build a radio-controlled car dirt track. The manager said the town holds the parcel under deed restrictions recorded in the Avery County Register of Deeds (deed book 403, page 793) and may lease but not sell the property.
The manager described the applicant’s stated plan: maintain the parcel, mow it, and keep it in good repair, with no impermeable surfaces or permanent or semi‑permanent structures permitted because the parcel is in a floodplain. He told the board the request must be reviewed by the North Carolina Department of Public Safety and that FEMA would give final approval of any lease.
Board members discussed lease term and payment. One member proposed a 99‑year lease and referenced a $14,000 payment figure to include in the application; the manager said the board must set the lease duration and the rent before sending the formal request to state reviewers.
The board agreed to proceed with submitting the formal letter to the Department of Public Safety and to include the lease term and amount discussed, subject to state and FEMA approvals. The manager said the lessee would be required to sign a lease and comply with the recorded deed restrictions.
Next steps: staff will prepare and send the formal request to the Department of Public Safety and return to the board with any state or FEMA conditions before approving any lease.
