Posted on 07/25/2008 7:17:24 PM PDT by lwd
The city of Kannapolis is taking its "Dale Trail" banners down at the request of Castle & Cooke, the developers of the N.C. Research Center — and they won't be going back up.
According to e-mails, California billionaire David Murdock, owner of Castle & Cook, is coming to town Saturday with a very important guest and wants to put the "best face on the city."
The banners along with a statue in Cannon Village honor the town's most famous native, Dale Earnhardt, who died in a last lap wreck in the Daytona 500 in 2001.
And according to the e-mails, Castle & Cooke doesn't want anything related to Dale Earnhardt to go back up.
The Dale Trail was developed after Murdock commissioned a 9-foot bronze statue of Earnhardt, the seven-time Winston Cup champion. The statue is located a small park in Cannon Village, which Murdock also owns.
No one is saying who the very important guest is, although some have speculated about Oprah Winfrey. Murdock previously announced he is working on a joint project with the entertainment billionaire.
In the past week, city officials, Castle & Cooke and the Cabarrus Convention and Visitors Bureau have exchanged e-mails about removing the Dale Trail banners and debated whether the NASCAR theme fits with re-inventing the city as the "Home to Science."
In a July 18 memo, City Manager Mike Legg advised councilmen and other officials of the decision to take down the banners, noting the Cabarrus Convention and Visitors Bureau is agreeable but wants to put up other flags or markers in the future.
The Convention and Visitors Bureau paid $14,000 for the banners and brackets. \
(Excerpt) Read more at salisburypost.com ...
The PC police sez you can't have banners for that dead white guy that drove NASCAR cuz we don't wanna offend Oprah.
I may be mistaken, but don’t you admin the “NASCAR” ping list? If so, will you please use it here...thanks!
What does Oprah, or whoever the "VIP" is have against Dale?
I don’t really give a rat’s hinie about NASCAR, but this urinates me off. Who the bleep do they think they are?
David Murdoch thinks the banners don’t fit well with the image he wants for the new Kannapolis he has built.
Imagine a corporate big-wig waltzing into Memphis and demanding that all signs of Elvis be removed.
Elvis has been dead 20+ years after all. / sarc
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/2051327/posts
Looks like I didn’t search good enough before posting. Sorry for the duplicate... at least this article is from a different source. Scratch that ping request Norm.
If you check out the comment board of the local paper, you might be in for a shock. The majority of posters have no problem with removing the signs, and there’s some outright hostility directed at Earnhardt. Sure opened my eyes.
at least this article is from a different source.
—
works for me.
as long as you have
Nascar as a keyword,
folks will see it..
I’ll add this thread’s link on to the weekly race thread.
If it hadn't been for Earnhardt no one would have ever heard of Kannapolis.
I agree with you, but a bunch of folks on that board complain rather bitterly about Dale doing nothing for the town. There's always someone who wants to moan.
The guest was Martha Stewart just heard on the radio WPTF
Interesting....thanks for the info!
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.