Lawmakers move to muffle nuisance noise lawsuits near racetracks

LANSING – A new bipartisan Senate bill would prevent nearby neighbors of raceways from filing nuisance claims against track owners.

The bill would prevent residents within a 5-mile radius of a track’s perimeter from suing the owner if they purchased the property after the track was built.

It was drafted months after the indefinite closure of Onondaga Dragway in Ingham County, which shuttered after years of battling lawsuits.

According to local press reports, Onondaga Dragway opened in the 1960s. It ran for several years before closing in 1978.

It officially reopened in 2010, followed by years of lawsuits from nearby residents that caused multiple closures.

According to court documents, attempts to limit hours and install noise-cancelling berms proved unsuccessful, and a judge ordered it to close indefinitely in May 2025.

Sen. Roger Hauck, R-Mount Pleasant, introduced the bill to restrict nuisance suits.

“I don’t think it’s fair to a business that’s been zoned to be there legally by the township to have someone start complaining about the noise of the racetrack when it’s been there since before the person has been there,” Hauck said.

Cosponsors include Sens. Sam Singh, D-East Lansing, Rick Outman, R-Six Lakes, and Joseph Bellino, R-Monroe.

The bill is pending in the Senate Regulatory Affairs Committee.