NASCAR legend Dale Earnhardt’s widow set for major defeat after $30billion feud

Teresa Earnhardt, widow of NASCAR legend Dale Earnhardt, looks set for defeat over a controversial $30billion plan to build a data center in North Carolina.

The 66-year-old has requested the rezoning of around 400 acres of land she owns in Mooresville to industrial to allow the project to go ahead. The project has though encountered bitter opposition from neighbors and local residents.

The most vocal opponents include other members of the Earnhardt family - notably Dale’s son Kerry.

He said his father would be “livid”, stating: “Frankly, I’m ashamed our family name is involved in the request to rezone a community that is thriving as a rural residential/agriculture zone to be changed to Industrial."

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Mooresville Mayor will oppose plan

A public hearing is set for September 15 to finally confirm a decision on whether the project - planned by Denver-based developer Tract - will go ahead. But all the signs now are pointing to a refusal to rezone, and defeat for Teresa Earnhardt.

Speaking to the Charlotte Observer, Mooresville Mayor Chris Carney says he and the town’s six commissioners cannot support the project, and will oppose it in any vote next month.

Carney explained: “[He and commissioners] went and looked at what Amazon does versus what Microsoft does, which is different than Apple, Google, and they all kind of have their own thing. And there are some that have been done really well.

“But without knowing who it is you’re eventually going to end up with, it’s almost impossible to make a decision.

“Every one of us has raised that as our biggest issue because, at the end of the day, even if we really liked the development crew, they’re really not the person we’re going to be married to for the next two or three decades.”

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Bitter battle over $30billion proposal

Tract claims the proposed Mooresville Technology Park would create 277 “recession-resistant” jobs, including some 195 paying $125,000 a year.

It also claims hundreds of millions of dollars in tax revenues would be generated for Mooresville, Iredell County, and local public schools over 20 years.

But opponents even set up a website to rally support against it, citing multiple concerns including strain on local infrastructure and a potential fall in property values in the area.

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