The Howard County Board of Appeals approved the conditional use permit Thursday for a go-kart race track a man built for his son.

The board voted 3-1 after nearly three hours of discussion, as well as weighing nearly 16 hours of testimony from experts and a number of Chris Siperko's neighbors.

Siperko built the half-mile-long, 24-foot-wide track between December 2023 and January 2024 on his property for his son, Achilles, who hopes to become a professional driver. His neighbors have been fighting it ever since.

Siperko said he consulted with a paving company and believed no permits were necessary for the project.

Granting the permit

Much of the board's discussion centered around the impact of the noise the track will have in the area.

Robbyn Harris, who cast the only vote to deny the permit, said the noise would create negative impacts on Siperko's neighbors.

"I can imagine someone having to hear that six days a week, for two-to-three hours a day. I don't see that as an occasional use, I think that's consistent use," she said. "It's going to be adversely affecting the neighbors and the environment because of that consistent sound."

Harris even questioned the board's initial decision to classify the race track as an athletic field. She also voiced concerns about the precedent that granting the permit would set.

Several board members also noted the acoustics expert Siperko's lawyer, Sang Oh, had testify conducted his tests at a different track in Florida.

Gene Ryan, the board's chair, reminded his fellow members to weigh only the real facts and findings in the case. He referred to the testimony several neighbors gave of hearing the noise when Siperko's son used the track.

"They talked about the animals being disturbed...then he speculated that it jumped a fence, but no animal jumped a fence. But, he said they were spooked, so I don't understand, which is it?" Ryan said.

The conditional use permit was granted with several conditions, including that the track can only be used up to five days a week, up to two hours a day, and only two go-karts can be on the track at a time.

Next steps

Oh said he was pleased with the decision and that he believes it follows the law.

"Honestly, there are no winners here. You have neighbors that are angry with one another. It's a tough situation, so we're hoping we can move forward and heal," he said.

Oh said there's still a lot more hurdles for the track to get through, including an environmental review. That said, the fully approved track will be different than what's already been built.

G. Macy Nelson, the lawyer for Siperko's neighbors, said he's planning to appeal the board's decision to the Howard County Circuit Court. He said there are several legal issues to consider, including whether the board had jurisdiction over this decision.

"We got three, four, or five years of work ahead of us. That's what I'm really thinking. This case is not going away, we have very strong legal issues," Nelson said.

Homemade racetrack faces opposition

Neighbors opposed the track, citing concerns about noise, environmental effects, safety, and property values.

Following complaints, a county inspection determined the track violated zoning and subdivision codes.

The Howard County Department of Planning and Zoning denied Siperko's conditional use application, stating go-karting was not a permitted activity under the county code.

That changed in June, when the Board of Appeals overruled the department's interpretation and decided the track qualified as an athletic field under county regulations. This decision allowed the permit application process to restart and led to a series of hearings stretching for hours over multiple sessions.

During a July 10 hearing, nearly a dozen neighbors testified against the track, many citing noise as the primary issue.

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

Kelly Rudden, who sometimes works remotely, said the sound from the track disrupted her workday. 

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

Oh brought in two experts to testify that the proposed racetrack meets county code requirements. Nelson focused his case on environmental impacts and the potential for encroachment on neighboring properties.