New details about ‘Next Gen California’ race track in Speedway Commerce Center planning document

Site plan for the Speedway Commerce Center and "Next Gen California" race track. (Screenshot: Hillwood Development Company LLC)

Fontana, Calif. — I learned some new information about the future for the former Auto Club Speedway site while reading a planning document on San Bernardino County’s website. The new Speedway Commerce Center will honor the history of the race track will preserving a 90-acre plot of land for the new “Next Gen California” race track.

In October 2022, Hillwood Development Company LLC released a 154-page document outlining the plan for the new Speedway Commerce Site. It was prepared by KimleyHorn in association with HPA Architecture, Webb Engineering and Fennemore.

Here are the highlights that I learned from reading the documents:

The document also included two renderings of the site plans. It appears that the “Next Gen California” race track will be built on 90 aces of land. This new NASCAR facility will become a short track of 0.67 of a mile. It will retain about 50,000 seats from the Auto Club Speedway’s center grandstands.

“On June 7, 2021, San Bernardino County approved a Revision to an Approved Action modifying the Planned Development Permit to allow replacement of the existing 2.0-mile oval racetrack with an approximately 0.67-mile short track and associated new development.”

The Next Gen California race track will have two access roads from Cherry Avenue. The existing road called Napa Street will be renamed in honor of former NASCAR driver Jimmie Johnson and will be called “Jimmie Johnson Drive.” In addition, another road on the southern portion of the race track will be renamed to honor another former NASCAR driver as “Jeff Gordon Drive.” Two new roads on the west and east sides of the new facility will be known as “Sunset Drive” and “Dreamland Drive.” For those who have been to Auto Club Speedway in the past, there will be a VIP access road from San Bernardino Avenue.

There are plans for NASCAR-themed art walks around the boundaries of the new race track. This will include art and banner poles. Race-themed art/signage may be installed, according to the plan.

Entry monuments with the words “Speedway Commerce Center” will be placed along Cherry Avenue. Three early renderings were created for the proposal document. One of the renderings featured a brown sign with corrugated rusted steel panels and decorative steel race flags sitting atop split-faced blocks. It pays tribute to the history of the site, which goes back to the Kaiser Steel Mills, which closed in 1983.

You may be asking yourself, why is all of this happening? The plan stated this reason: “The Next Gen Motorsports facility was intended to facilitate more competitive “short track” racing favored by race fans and broadcast partners and to provide a more intimate venue with upgraded amenities and an enhanced fan experience.“

NASCAR has been tight lipped about the whole Next Gen California project. However, an article from “The Athletic” states the new race track won’t be ready for the 2025 season but 2026 is more likely.

The site will feature solar-ready, EV charging spaces along with energy-efficient buildings. The Speedway Commerce Center hopes to reach a goal of zero-emissions business operations by 2030.

*Screenshot: Hillwood Development Company LLC*

The document says, “Approximately 90 acres of the ACS site will be retained by California Speedway, LLC for development and operation of the NASCAR “Next Gen In California” motorsports facility (Next Gen motorsports facility) approved by San Bernardino County on June 7, 2021 (the 90-acre motorsports facility is “not a part” of this Specific Plan).”

Semi trucks are expected to service the Speedway Commerce Site with a minimum of two round trips per day.

Here is verbatim from the Speedway Commerce Center planning documents:

The new Speedway Commerce Center will occupy approximately 433 acres of the approximately 522-acre ACS Site. That totals 6.5 million square feet of industrial space. Phase I with two buildings totaling 1.8 million square feet broke ground in summer 2023. Phase 2 with up to 3 million square feet broke ground in the second quarter of 2024. Finally, Phase 3 will offer an additional 1.5 million square feet.

Future redevelopment under this Specific Plan will include the following:

-Five planning areas with up to 6.6 million square feet of high-cube logistics/e-commerce uses, approximately 261,360 square feet of ancillary commercial uses, and an additional planning area to accommodate vehicle parking fields/drop lots areas around the future Next Gen motorsport facility.  

-Approximately 98 acres of vehicle parking fields/drop lots to accommodate ongoing Next Gen motorsport facility events on designated days as well as parking for permitted land uses;  

-Open Space area for gathering, parkway landscaping, and stormwater;  

-New public roadways and infrastructure to support the proposed uses as well as existing ongoing ACS events;  

-Opportunities for pedestrian walkway connections between the parking fields/drop lots, enhanced landscaping, signage and public art; and  

-Access to exercise stations, multi-use path and trail connections, and community art walk.

On June 7, 2021, San Bernardino County approved a Revision to an Approved Action modifying the Planned Development Permit to allow replacement of the existing 2.0-mile oval racetrack with an approximately 0.67-mile short track and associated new development. A further revision to the Planned Development Permit is required to remove from its coverage approximately 433 acres of the ACS site that will be governed by this Specific Plan.

The remaining approximately 90 acres for the short track and support facilities (i.e., modified entrance gates, paddock, garages, restrooms, concession stands, etc.) along with parking, entrance, and landscaping improvements would continue to operate under the Planned Development Permit, as revised. The revisions to the Planned Development Permit would not change the operational characteristics permitted under the plan, except to the extent certain facilities (such as the existing dragstrip) are on land that will not be retained for the motorsports facility.

A grandstand with approximately 65,383 seats is located south of the oval. A midway with restaurants, entertainment, and display facilities are located south of the grandstand. The facility also has a motorcycle track, drag strip, and exterior go-kart track.

In 2020, California Speedway, LLC, the owner of the ACS, applied for a Major Revision to an Approved Action to replace the existing 2-mile track with a 0.5-mile short track and reduce seating capacity to a maximum capacity of 50,000 persons with approximately 35,000 grandstands seats (the “Next Gen” motorsports facility).

As approved by the County on December 7, 2020, the Next Gen motorsports facility included the development of a 0.5-mile track and support facilities (i.e., modified entrance gates, paddock, garages, restrooms, concession stands, etc.) on approximately 90 acres of the approximately 522-acre site along with parking, entrance, and landscaping improvements.

The Next Gen in California Project would retain a portion of the existing grandstands and certain support facilities, including food service/concession areas, offices, suites, and entrance gates.

The Next Gen Motorsports facility was intended to facilitate more competitive “short track” racing favored by race fans and broadcast partners and to provide a more intimate venue with upgraded amenities and an enhanced fan experience.

In May 2021, California Speedway, LLC applied for a subsequent Revision to an Approved Action, requesting to replace the existing 2-mile oval track with a new 0.67-mile track, in lieu of the previously approved 0.5-mile short track. This change was based on track design requirements for racing following extensive simulator testing of the previous short track design by drivers following approval of the Next Gen motorsports facility.

This change to the configuration of the new short track required additional changes to the construction and demolition plans previously approved for the Next Gen in California motorsports facility, although its operational characteristics were unchanged. The County approved the revised Next Gen in California Project on June 7, 2021, and filed the Notice of Determination on June 9, 2021.

The Next Gen motorsports facility area is designated as “Not a Part” of this Specific Plan area and is governed by its Planned Development Permit. The Next Gen motorsports facility will host events throughout the year in accordance with its approvals and consistent with existing events at the ACS (although at a reduced scale); the Specific Plan makes certain provisions for access and parking to accommodate this ongoing use.

The Specific Plan area contains approximately 98 acres of dedicated parking fields which provide vehicular parking for the adjacent Next Gen motorsports facility use during designated event times, expected to be approximately 20 days per year. During the remainder of the year, the lots serve as drop lots for trailers or other large vehicles supporting Specific Plan uses.