How Do I Legally Have A Moto Track On My Property?

DM268
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52
Joined
12/25/2014
Location
Princeton, MN US
Edited Date/Time 12/29/2020 6:01pm
Hey everyone,

I apologize if there are already threads about this. I am interested in purchasing a piece of property with the intent of building a house and a moto track on it. I would like to go through this process legally instead of building a track and hoping it works out. I know it shouldn't be near town/close neighbors. I am planning on purchasing about 30 acres or so. Does anyone have any experience with this?

How can I know if I can legally before purchasing the land?
How does the land need to be zoned?

I am not looking to open a public track, but a private track for my family, friends and I to enjoy.

I am fortunate to already have a private track that is on my family's property and haven't had any issued, but would like to have a track on my own personal property as well. Attached is a picture from a drone of my current track, it is always a work in progress of changing things up. It is on about six acres, nothing too crazy, but convenient to have for testing and getting in moto's during the week. For those of you that enjoy our second amendment rights, if you can't tell along the left side of it is a shooting range that I can get about 500 yards out of. I have nearby friends that have tracks, but have not been so fortunate.



Thanks in advance for the input.
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BMc914
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469
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Denver, CO US
12/28/2020 1:05am
If you can legally put a moto track on my property that would be awesome. Not sure how to do it. Sorry
1
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sumdood
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San Clemente, CA US
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12/28/2020 3:23am
I can’t be the only one pissed that this is even a real thing. What can I do on my property ? I hope you can pull it off and really hope someday this country gets back on the common sense train. Good luck to you
29

The Shop

sgrimmxdad
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Farmville, NC US
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12/28/2020 5:27am
Check out ALL your zoning laws and your environment regulations. Each state, town, district, county, etc... can be different. Also make sure there isn't a stupid noise regulations. I am out in the country but our county has a stupid noise law, nothing above 65 db, which rules out about everything other than talking... I have a neighbor that calls the law everytime we crank the bike and files a noise complaint. Lawsuits are coming I am sure.... Most of the deputies that come out tell us to keep riding and stick around and watch a while LOL!!
4
usp4u
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Karns City, PA US
12/28/2020 5:31am
Fuck em. That's how.
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dsmith
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way north, IN US
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12/28/2020 5:41am
Make sure the neighbors are decent about it..
mx 219
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South Central, PA US
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12/28/2020 5:49am Edited Date/Time 12/28/2020 5:58am
In PA due to stormwater regulations to legally have a track on your property it has to be less than an acre without having to pay a dime and you can only "disturb" less than 5,000 square feet. Once you go above an acre there are some fees associated with putting a track in, I think it depends on how much you "disturb" the soil.

I know this much so far because my dad is pretty much a subcontractor for PA DEP. I have wanted a track in my backyard since I was like 8 and eventually I will have one when I buy land to build a house. I will also do things the right way, even if that means I go above an acre and pay a little money. I would rather do it the right way and not get shut down, as you can see others feel otherwise. I won't put people down for that though, IMO if you own the land you should be able to whatever you want with it, but I know that isn't always the case. Ask Chad Reed.

Last little tip, if you put a track on your property make sure it is surrounded by trees...you can thank me later.
9
crdnlplt
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SEPA, PA US
12/28/2020 5:54am
Quick question, what is the size of the area of the track in the picture above? Thanks
1
pjnickel22
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Location
Fridley, MN US
12/28/2020 6:39am
I'd be very careful of that area. I'm vice president of a off road club and we bought 120 acres just NE of you for single track trails and we have been just getting put through a wringer with the neighbors and the county. We were sent a cease and desist letter this spring while building. Come to find out we had to get a conditional use permit, an environmental assessment worksheet, a sound study done and pled our case in front of the county board. We still cannot drive any dirt bikes on the land. Funny thing is that 4 wheelers, trucks, logging and shooting are all ok. As you can imagine all very expensive to get done and all due to one neighbor. What I would do is call a land use lawyer for a consultation.
3
NorCalMXDad
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Location
Wheatland, CA US
12/28/2020 7:58am
I put a track in at my house, haven’t had any issues with it what so ever....
8
DM268
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Location
Princeton, MN US
12/28/2020 8:17am
dsmith wrote:
Make sure the neighbors are decent about it..
The problem is neighbors come and go.
1
DM268
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Location
Princeton, MN US
12/28/2020 8:19am
mx 219 wrote:
In PA due to stormwater regulations to legally have a track on your property it has to be less than an acre without having to pay...
In PA due to stormwater regulations to legally have a track on your property it has to be less than an acre without having to pay a dime and you can only "disturb" less than 5,000 square feet. Once you go above an acre there are some fees associated with putting a track in, I think it depends on how much you "disturb" the soil.

I know this much so far because my dad is pretty much a subcontractor for PA DEP. I have wanted a track in my backyard since I was like 8 and eventually I will have one when I buy land to build a house. I will also do things the right way, even if that means I go above an acre and pay a little money. I would rather do it the right way and not get shut down, as you can see others feel otherwise. I won't put people down for that though, IMO if you own the land you should be able to whatever you want with it, but I know that isn't always the case. Ask Chad Reed.

Last little tip, if you put a track on your property make sure it is surrounded by trees...you can thank me later.
Exactly, I would like to do things right the first time. I know too many people who have tracks that are now sitting as hills with weeds because they can no longer ride it.
DM268
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Location
Princeton, MN US
12/28/2020 8:20am
crdnlplt wrote:
Quick question, what is the size of the area of the track in the picture above? Thanks
It is on about six or so acres.
dl117
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Cambridge, MN US
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2800th
12/28/2020 8:24am
DM268 wrote:
Hey everyone, I apologize if there are already threads about this. I am interested in purchasing a piece of property with the intent of building a...
Hey everyone,

I apologize if there are already threads about this. I am interested in purchasing a piece of property with the intent of building a house and a moto track on it. I would like to go through this process legally instead of building a track and hoping it works out. I know it shouldn't be near town/close neighbors. I am planning on purchasing about 30 acres or so. Does anyone have any experience with this?

How can I know if I can legally before purchasing the land?
How does the land need to be zoned?

I am not looking to open a public track, but a private track for my family, friends and I to enjoy.

I am fortunate to already have a private track that is on my family's property and haven't had any issued, but would like to have a track on my own personal property as well. Attached is a picture from a drone of my current track, it is always a work in progress of changing things up. It is on about six acres, nothing too crazy, but convenient to have for testing and getting in moto's during the week. For those of you that enjoy our second amendment rights, if you can't tell along the left side of it is a shooting range that I can get about 500 yards out of. I have nearby friends that have tracks, but have not been so fortunate.



Thanks in advance for the input.
hope it works out, but I think east of you is a few private tracks I know of. And when all this white shit is gone, I will come over to help break in that track you have now....lol
DM268
Posts
52
Joined
12/25/2014
Location
Princeton, MN US
12/28/2020 8:29am
pjnickel22 wrote:
I'd be very careful of that area. I'm vice president of a off road club and we bought 120 acres just NE of you for single...
I'd be very careful of that area. I'm vice president of a off road club and we bought 120 acres just NE of you for single track trails and we have been just getting put through a wringer with the neighbors and the county. We were sent a cease and desist letter this spring while building. Come to find out we had to get a conditional use permit, an environmental assessment worksheet, a sound study done and pled our case in front of the county board. We still cannot drive any dirt bikes on the land. Funny thing is that 4 wheelers, trucks, logging and shooting are all ok. As you can imagine all very expensive to get done and all due to one neighbor. What I would do is call a land use lawyer for a consultation.
Yes crazy MN does not seem to be very track friendly. I have a close friend who has a 100 acres near Hinckley in the middle of nowhere, and he is very limited on the riding that can be done on the property. He can only have "two" riders at a time on the tracks, originally only one. We think the neighbor that was complaining passed away and have more than two ride but we don't have a whole bunch. We had no problems for four years then all the sudden it became an issue. We have also been courteous of not riding before 10am and no later than 5pm since he has owned the property.

Same situation, 4 wheelers, trucks, shooting, the 49ers training facility is nearby and that's fine for using all their industrial equipment.

I hope your situation gets better for your club. I do recall seeing somewhere that MN is trying to open up more trails for dirt bikes. It doesn't make sense you can ride 4 wheeler, UTZ and Off Road vehicles (jeeps and stuff) but not dirt bikes.
1
DM268
Posts
52
Joined
12/25/2014
Location
Princeton, MN US
12/28/2020 8:30am
pjnickel22 wrote:
I'd be very careful of that area. I'm vice president of a off road club and we bought 120 acres just NE of you for single...
I'd be very careful of that area. I'm vice president of a off road club and we bought 120 acres just NE of you for single track trails and we have been just getting put through a wringer with the neighbors and the county. We were sent a cease and desist letter this spring while building. Come to find out we had to get a conditional use permit, an environmental assessment worksheet, a sound study done and pled our case in front of the county board. We still cannot drive any dirt bikes on the land. Funny thing is that 4 wheelers, trucks, logging and shooting are all ok. As you can imagine all very expensive to get done and all due to one neighbor. What I would do is call a land use lawyer for a consultation.
DM268 wrote:
Yes crazy MN does not seem to be very track friendly. I have a close friend who has a 100 acres near Hinckley in the middle...
Yes crazy MN does not seem to be very track friendly. I have a close friend who has a 100 acres near Hinckley in the middle of nowhere, and he is very limited on the riding that can be done on the property. He can only have "two" riders at a time on the tracks, originally only one. We think the neighbor that was complaining passed away and have more than two ride but we don't have a whole bunch. We had no problems for four years then all the sudden it became an issue. We have also been courteous of not riding before 10am and no later than 5pm since he has owned the property.

Same situation, 4 wheelers, trucks, shooting, the 49ers training facility is nearby and that's fine for using all their industrial equipment.

I hope your situation gets better for your club. I do recall seeing somewhere that MN is trying to open up more trails for dirt bikes. It doesn't make sense you can ride 4 wheeler, UTZ and Off Road vehicles (jeeps and stuff) but not dirt bikes.
UTV* not UTZ
DM268
Posts
52
Joined
12/25/2014
Location
Princeton, MN US
12/28/2020 8:31am
DM268 wrote:
Hey everyone, I apologize if there are already threads about this. I am interested in purchasing a piece of property with the intent of building a...
Hey everyone,

I apologize if there are already threads about this. I am interested in purchasing a piece of property with the intent of building a house and a moto track on it. I would like to go through this process legally instead of building a track and hoping it works out. I know it shouldn't be near town/close neighbors. I am planning on purchasing about 30 acres or so. Does anyone have any experience with this?

How can I know if I can legally before purchasing the land?
How does the land need to be zoned?

I am not looking to open a public track, but a private track for my family, friends and I to enjoy.

I am fortunate to already have a private track that is on my family's property and haven't had any issued, but would like to have a track on my own personal property as well. Attached is a picture from a drone of my current track, it is always a work in progress of changing things up. It is on about six acres, nothing too crazy, but convenient to have for testing and getting in moto's during the week. For those of you that enjoy our second amendment rights, if you can't tell along the left side of it is a shooting range that I can get about 500 yards out of. I have nearby friends that have tracks, but have not been so fortunate.



Thanks in advance for the input.
dl117 wrote:
hope it works out, but I think east of you is a few private tracks I know of. And when all this white shit is gone...
hope it works out, but I think east of you is a few private tracks I know of. And when all this white shit is gone, I will come over to help break in that track you have now....lol
There is definitely private tracks East of me towards Cambridge. There is also about four others that I ride at in Princeton. Pretty fortunate to have a lot of options within 20min of me.
12/28/2020 8:34am
In life sometimes brother you just have to go for it.
All the questions your asking us are for YOU to find out about the piece of land you want to buy.
We don't know PA zoning laws and if you want to play 'legally allowed to disturb this much soil' etc then again not one of us 'out of staters is going to know or look that up.

My advice would be raise that flag high into the sky, have the time of your life on a dozer and ride.

They shut you down? You gave it a shot.

Your drone photo is simply a field that can be dozed and started again.

If it's that same scenario-open land-what are you worried about?

You could try for permits.....or you couldn't..
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3
DM268
Posts
52
Joined
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Location
Princeton, MN US
12/28/2020 8:34am
I put a track in at my house, haven’t had any issues with it what so ever.... [img]https://p.vitalmx.com/photos/forums/2020/12/28/468500/s1200_CF677583_897B_4F80_B7EC_DBD4F6B67814.jpg[/img]
I put a track in at my house, haven’t had any issues with it what so ever....
That is a sweet looking track! Super flat out by me. I hope to find some elevation like what you have.
1
DM268
Posts
52
Joined
12/25/2014
Location
Princeton, MN US
12/28/2020 8:42am
HarrowDrag wrote:
In life sometimes brother you just have to go for it. All the questions your asking us are for YOU to find out about the piece...
In life sometimes brother you just have to go for it.
All the questions your asking us are for YOU to find out about the piece of land you want to buy.
We don't know PA zoning laws and if you want to play 'legally allowed to disturb this much soil' etc then again not one of us 'out of staters is going to know or look that up.

My advice would be raise that flag high into the sky, have the time of your life on a dozer and ride.

They shut you down? You gave it a shot.

Your drone photo is simply a field that can be dozed and started again.

If it's that same scenario-open land-what are you worried about?

You could try for permits.....or you couldn't..
I get that you don't know MN zoning laws. I just was wondering where you would start.

Haha I know part of me just wants to talk to the local neighbors and have a conversation about it. I would also be like I won't ride more than three days a week no earlier than 10am and no later than 7pm and if they can give me a heads up for some event they are hosting and don't want the noise to work with them on it and be respectful to them. I just really don't want to invest $7k+ into a track just to have to take it back down.

It isn't the same land that my current track is. This is on my fathers property. I would like one on my own property.

I appreciate the feedback!
ColoradoMX26
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7
Joined
10/17/2019
Location
Elizabeth, CO US
12/28/2020 8:42am
This is why I left Huntington Beach and moved to Colorado! I bought a 35 acre ranch and built two tracks and a shooting range. In general the more Democrats live in an area the lower the probability you will be able to have a track! Elbert County CO is super conservative and people around here believe that you should be able to live free. Unfortunately we live in a time where freedom is not in style.
26
10
NorCalMXDad
Posts
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11/11/2020
Location
Wheatland, CA US
12/28/2020 8:50am Edited Date/Time 12/28/2020 8:51am
I put a track in at my house, haven’t had any issues with it what so ever.... [img]https://p.vitalmx.com/photos/forums/2020/12/28/468500/s1200_CF677583_897B_4F80_B7EC_DBD4F6B67814.jpg[/img]
I put a track in at my house, haven’t had any issues with it what so ever....
DM268 wrote:
That is a sweet looking track! Super flat out by me. I hope to find some elevation like what you have.
Thank you. We're gonna make a few changes to the layout but pretty happy with how it came out. Heres a couple videos from a drone and one of it being ridden
https://www.instagram.com/p/B_QdycupbF0/

https://www.instagram.com/p/CHt04lxsmPiITTgMIjw0ZY6bf6DSxyanRk_NM00/
1
motomike894
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1519
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9/6/2009
Location
Waterloo, IN US
12/28/2020 9:00am
I bought some land and built a track it was that easy, I live out in the country obviously but it’s never been a issue.
MelonFan123
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1522
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8/20/2006
Location
Ventura/LA County, CA US
12/28/2020 10:47am
Be glad you don't live wherever this is (I think he's in upstate NY)



3
nickm
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702
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9/15/2011
Location
CA
12/28/2020 11:05am
Its going to be expensive no matter how you approach it, but I'd always start with a property lawyer. You're paying them a pile of cash to stare at pieces of paper anyways so have them do all the zoning and regulation legwork for you. All other emotional arguments aside, this approach is the (expensive) way to do it right, or at least be in a position to know it can't be done.

Talking to neighbours isn't really something I'd do with a pile of money on the line, most people are polite face to face and then are the first to call the the moment you fire up a bike.

Agree with the trees everywhere comment, also put the quietest muffler you can on the bike, If neighbours can't hear you its a huge plus.
foreman52
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CA
Fantasy
3496th
12/28/2020 11:07am
Anyone that builds a MX track close to other homes and properties is crazy IMO. If you’re going to do it make sure the land you have is a considerable distance from any residential areas.

Sounds like you have the right idea and frame of mind for this to be successful.

I was fortunate enough to have this family playground (02-18) about 1.7km from any residential homes. Only scheduled practices on certain days to accommodate the community. You would be surprised how far the noise can travel.

Best of luck!

4
JustMX
Posts
4825
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4/1/2008
Location
TN US
12/28/2020 11:41am
Well, saying where you are building it would probably help, because there are a lot of different hoops and challenges where ever you think about building a track.

There are only 3 important things when it comes to property, 1. Location 2. Location 3. Location...

Do some research before you go talk to any neighbors so you know what to expect if there is opposition.

If you just want to go talk to neighbors tell them you are thinking about building contract chicken houses or maybe a large organic hog farm.

Then when they find out what you actually have planned maybe they will be relieved.
2
byke
Posts
1905
Joined
8/12/2015
Location
Auburn, CA US
12/28/2020 12:37pm
As our Canadian friend has done, the best method is to just be so far out that there is no one to complain. Even if you get approval from a board of supervisors, that all goes out the window when people start complaining. Short answer is, don't be near people.
3
mtndoc_842
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Cortez, CO US
Fantasy
1378th
12/28/2020 12:50pm
Noise is your biggest issue, try and give as big a buffer as you can to your nearest neighbor. You may have to get more land than you intended just to have a distance barrier for noise.

I have 230 acres in CO, I have multiple tracks on the back 2/3’s of the property with about a 1/4 mile buffer of my property to the nearest neighbor. Having your property zoned as Ag will also probably help as well.

My house sits at the front of my property and you cant hear bikes on the back property from there. I also rarely have more than my family riding and then it is only me plus 2-3 buddies.
1

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