Controversy broke out in September/October 2007 when Smith revealed plans to build a drag racing strip on land close to Charlotte Motor Speedway. Many residents living near the speedway in the city of Concord, North Carolina opposed this move, stating that it would cause excessive noise and traffic. The city of Concord then changed the zoning around the track, essentially preventing him from being able to build the drag strip. On October 2, 2007, Smith demanded that the Speedway and his surrounding land be unannexed from the city of Concord or he would shut down the speedway, taking hundreds of millions of dollars away from Concord and businesses surrounding it, and move it to a different plot of land within the metropolitan area of Charlotte, North Carolina. He said that he would be able to finish such a project with $350 million and 11 months.