The wide open space of Douglas County is why so many are moving there. Some prefer the quiet, serene surroundings, but others want to use their private land for recreation.
If a proposal passes through the Douglas County Commissioners, land owners would be limited to the types of motorsports activities they could have on their land. A resolution that’s being considered would restrict people from moving more than 50 cubic yards of dirt in order to build a track for motorsports. To put that in perspective, that’s about two semi-truck loads.
Randy Runyan is considering a move from the city to rural Douglas County, but says if the proposal passes, his family will find somewhere else to go. Runyan said his son is big into motocross and at the age of six, has already outgrown their backyard track and an upgrade is needed to keep him growing.
“If I want to ride or my son wants to ride on our property, we should be able to and if the neighbor has a problem with it, they can come over and talk to me and we can work out a time that we can ride," said Runyan.
The concern from some neighbors is the noise. Runyan said he understands that not all people like to hear the sounds of dirt bikes, but that issues should be taken up between neighbors and not legislated by the county.
County leaders said they’ll still allow motorized vehicles on private land for general uses, as long as larger intricate tracks aren’t being constructed.
“The question is, at what scale of facility does the county need to consider additional land use regulations because the impacts of those facilities such as noise and grading," said Jeanette Bare, who’s a Douglas County Planning Manager.
If you would like to participate in the next public discussion, it’ll be held at the Douglas County Building on Third Street Thursday January 7th at 5:30pm.
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