WISCASSET

Selectmen voted 3-1 Tuesday to issue the Wiscasset Speedway a Special Amusement Permit allowing it to hold events on Friday nights and Sundays from spring to early fall.

Vanessa Jordan of the Wiscasset Speedway said the permit was necessary in order to allow events on days when there are no scheduled races. The speedway now offers racing only on Saturdays. 

Jordan said she has been approached about using the speedway for truck pulls, go-cart and equestrian races and the Coastal 200 — a Sunday afternoon race that had historically been run at the Speedway but hasn’t since the venue reopened under new management.

Residents were mixed on the issue during a public hearing Tuesday. Some complained about alleged drag racing on local roads by patrons leaving the speedway, noise and fumes, and trash dumping along the road. Others said they believe the speedway is a good neighbor and favored the permit.

Selectwoman Pamela Dunning, who cast the lone vote against the permit, said she can hear speedway noise from her home every weekend. “People can’t enjoy their own yards,” she said. 

The Select Board also considered, in separate executive sessions, a tax-increment financing proposal for Molnlycke and the disposition of the Mason Station property.

Selectmen met with the town attorney Tuesday to discuss the Molnlycke project. No information was immediately available about what had occurred during executive session; no one from the company attended. 

Molnlycke is considering expanding its presence either in  Twin Rivers Industrial Park or at Brunswick Landing, bringing 10 to 30 new jobs. 

Molnlycke was supposed to have reached a decision by the end of November, but a week into December, no decision has been finalized. Town officials have said voter approval would be necessary for a TIF.

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