Testimony ends in dispute over Howard County go-kart track as final decision nears

Testimony concluded in the ongoing case of a go-kart racetrack in Howard County after another hours-long hearing Thursday night.

Nearly a dozen neighbors of Chris Siperko testified against approval of his racetrack.

Both sides now have to submit a written summary of their cases to the Board of Appeals.

Thursday's hearing had some tense exchanges between neighbors and Siperko's attorney, Sang Oh.

Neighbors cite noise concerns

The attorney for Siperko's neighbors, G. Macy Nelson, called up the last batch of witnesses. In their testimonies, the racetrack's impact on the environment and property values was brought up.

However, a lot of the concern focused on noise.

"I went to an indoor go-kart track to see what a go-kart sounded like," neighbor Michael Mulcare said. "Even at fairly low speeds, 35 miles an hour...they have a distinct whine. They also have screeching tires."

Several neighbors also talked about hearing Siperko's son's go-kart when it was used inside their homes.

Kelly Rudden talked about her concern as someone who sometimes works from home.

"If I am meeting with a multi-million dollar company and a high net worth individual, I cannot have racetrack noise being heard on a teleconference," she said.

Heated exchanges

The Board of Appeals granted Siperko a second try for a conditional use permit after deciding the racetrack is considered an athletic field. 

Siperko first had his racetrack built in January 2024. He built it so his son, Achilles, would have a place to practice.

During the last hearing in June, Oh called up two experts -- a civil engineer and an acoustic consultant -- to show that Siperko's racetrack will be compliant under the Howard County code. 

In his cross-examination of neighbors on Thursday, Oh tried to weaken their arguments, often asking if these neighbors had evidence of negative impacts.

Oh was sometimes met with hostility.

Oh asked Rudden, "Do you have any empirical evidence to present to this board to prove that you will be able to hear noises from this source that exceed 55 decibels?"

Rudden responded, "That's not my responsibility, but I will say that you guys didn't even use your own track for your testing, so how would we?"

Nelson and Oh have until 4:30 p.m. on July 24 to submit their written summary of their cases.

The Board of Appeals will make a final decision on this case on July 31.