The public might be in support of the possibility of a resort and casino being brought to the Hampton area. This conclusion was the result of a public meeting at the Atlanta Motor Speedway (AMS) hosted by the Georgia House of Representatives Special Committee on Economic Growth, containing members from all over the state.

  Although discussed in years past, a vote in the Georgia House of Representatives and Senate has yet to legalize gambling, to include casinos, sports betting and horse racing, in the state of Georgia.

  The only gambling allowed currently in Georgia is the state lottery, which funds the Hope Scholarship program.

  A proposal from AMS, in collaboration with Foxwoods Resort Casino in Connecticut, however, hopes to place the topic back on the table for consideration and gain public support due to its presence in the area.

  “Over time, Atlanta Motor Speedway has developed into truly a nationally and internationally recognized facility attracting hundreds of thousands of visitors to our area each year from the United States and other countries. In doing this, it has produced a significant economic impact to our region and our state,” said Ed Clark, President of the Atlanta Motor Speedway. “Now, we are ready to pursue the next step of our business model … to create a major destination resort here at the Speedway.”

  The hope is that Atlanta Motor Speedway might be one of the locations chosen in the state of Georgia, if the resolution is passed, to be a multifaceted resort destination. Such an addition would enhance the event offerings of AMS, who had scheduled events 365 days out of the year in 2019.

  “We want to build a resort that has things that our community doesn’t already have,” said Clark. “We want to do something that all of us who live and work in this area would be proud of.”

  The addition to the current one and a half mile racetrack already in use at the speedway could include a luxury resort, a casino, cinema, a karting facility, a theme park, outdoor adventure courses, a night club, indoor/ outdoor concert areas, an indoor/outdoor water park, a convention center, and apartments, along with a variety of retail shopping and dining facilities.

  Clark cites the close proximity of the speedway to Downtown Atlanta, Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, 1-75, and the Henry County Airport as benefits for its construction in Hampton.

  The Georgia House of Representatives Special Com-mittee remarked on the revenues that are derived from licensing registrations and tax proceeds that would benefit the local and state economy in areas such as education, the Hope Scholarship program, healthcare and local infrastructure, among other considerations.

  Locals in attendance, for the most part, showed support for the prospect of the development coming to Hampton.

  “Opportunity don’t knock often. When it knocks, we need to take advantage of it. I have lived here since ‘92. I have been at the Atlanta Motor Speedway since 1993. I volunteer for the events, they have had projects that I have worked on, helped with. Let me tell you something, you are standing on one of the greatest facilities there is around because there is nothing that Atlanta Motor Speedway does that is not first-class,” said Ed Hendry, local resident. “I am tired of taking my wife and I to Biloxi and spending my Georgia tax money and driving six hours to go down and have some entertainment.”

  “I’ll probably never live to see it finished,” said Hendry. “That’s the sad part because I believe in it and I have thought for years that it ought to be here. We are going to have

[infrastructure]

problems, but we can address them. I am excited about Atlanta Motor Speedway being involved in this because I think it is a first-class facility and they will do what is right for the community.”

  Despite the outpouring of support for the project, some locals voiced concerns over the current infrastructure in place on Tara Boulevard and considered the impact of more traffic on the highway due to the added traffic that a large facility would attract.

  “One thing you can count on me for is to have an opinion. I came here with an open mind. I was neither for or against, I was just curious. There were a couple of red flags for me. One was the comment that four lanes would handle the traffic. That road doesn’t handle the traffic now, nor does Tara Boulevard. I live in Hampton and commute to McDonough everyday and, in the afternoon, it takes me between 45 minutes and an hour to go 11 miles door to door from my work to my home, and that’s on a good day,” said Katherine Pillatzki, Hampton resident. “We have a lot of people in Hampton and Griffin that commute to Atlanta everyday. It’s one thing on race weekend. All of the locals know how to cope with the traffic and avoid it on race weekends. But, if you’re talking about something like a waterpark that is going to have people Monday through Friday coming in here and that is going to cause traffic in the area, I’m concerned about commuters being able to get to work in a timely manner when it’s already a challenge.”

  An amendment to the current Georgia Constitution would require a two-thirds vote of approval in the Georgia House of Representatives and a two-thirds vote of approval in the Senate. If voted on and approved, the amendment would be presented on a ballot and given to Georgia voters later this year.

  “The constitutional amendment would legalize and it would set the parameters [for casinos, sports betting and horse racing, in the state of Georgia]” said committee co-chair Rep. Alan Powell.

  If the amendment is passed by voters, an independent gaming committee would be formed that would decide how many and where such gaming locations would be constructed.

  This topic will be discussed in the current legislative session.

  “The ultimate goal is to allow the voters of Georgia to decide if this is something they want,” said Clark. “Letting the people decide, I can’t think of a more American way to do this process.”

  Powell states that putting this topic on the ballot for voters is a complex process but that the legislators charged with making a vote in the House and Senate welcome input on this topic from Georgia residents.

  “There is a lot of moving pieces into this. First there has got to be that Constitutional amendment. But, first and foremost, we have to have the support of the people of Georgia,” said Powell. “If y’all want the right to vote, you need to reach out to your legislators, House, Senate, Governor, Lieutenant Governor. They need to know that there is support to put it on the ballot. It is the duty of the legislators that we put it in a format so that the public can see what they are voting on and to know in advance what they are voting on.”

  Atlanta Motor Speedway opened in 1960 as a Nascar facility. Over time, the facility has  developed a schedule of events to include a Nascar Weekend, ImportAlliance, Summit Racing Equipment, Atlanta Motorama Car Show, Imagine Music Festival, Georgia State Fair, Atlanta Air Show, 15 weeks of O’Reilly Auto Parts Friday Night Drag Racing, 32 weeks of Legend Car Racing, and 10 weeks of the Thursday Thunder Summer Series, among others.