Mooresville Dragway, one of North Carolina’s longest-running drag racing facilities, is set for a major transformation under new ownership. According to a report by Joe Marusak of The Charlotte Observer, new owner Matt Erich plans to redevelop the 70-year-old dragstrip into a $50 million motorsports destination called Race City Motorpark & Social Club. The project is planned for the existing Mooresville Dragway property in Rowan County near Mooresville, long known as Race City USA.
Erich told The Charlotte Observer the concept is “the motorsports version of a golf country club,” with plans calling for a 4-mile championship road course, a new eighth-mile dragstrip, around 70 climate-controlled car garages – described as car condominiums – and approximately 70 townhomes, referred to as luxury villas.
While the development broadens the property’s scope well beyond drag racing, the eighth-mile dragway remains part of the plan. Mooresville Dragway debuted as a dirt track in 1956 and has operated as a concrete-and-asphalt facility since 1959, according to Erich’s comments to the Observer.
The 270-acre project’s first phase is expected to include the new racing venues, the garage units, and a stone-and-timber clubhouse overlooking the property. Plans also include a lakeside infinity pool, a chef-driven fine dining restaurant with a terrace, a member’s lounge with a private bar, a whiskey library, a cigar terrace, professional-grade driving simulators, a gym, spa and recovery center, concierge auto detailing and maintenance, 24/7 private security, and gated access control.
Erich told the Observer the project is entering its government approval phase. His goal is to be “shovel-ready” by October, with the first phase complete next year and the residential phase following in 2027-2028. The project would represent one of the most significant investments in a North Carolina drag racing property in recent memory, pairing the history of Mooresville Dragway with the growing private motorsports club model that has gained traction around the country.
For a track located in one of the country’s densest racing markets – surrounded by NASCAR teams, race shops, performance businesses, and generations of grassroots racers – the plan positions the property as both a preserved racing site and a higher-end motorsports lifestyle development.
Erich told the Observer the project is “about more than preserving a racetrack,” adding that it is also about protecting Mooresville’s motorsports culture and identity.
“Motorsports helped shape Race City USA, and we believe the future of this property should continue that legacy,” Erich said.
The project, if approved, would mark a new era for a venue that has been part of North Carolina’s drag racing landscape for nearly seven decades.
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