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NASCAR Hall of Fame taking shape despite tough economy

Written by David Whisenant

CHARLOTTE, NC (WBTV) - Despite the tough economy, it's full speed ahead for the Nascar Hall of Fame which is under construction in Center City Charlotte.

Wearing safety vests, hard hats and glasses, we toured the NASCAR Hall of Fame on Friday. 

Our first stop was outside the wall where the most recognizable feature of the Hall is being installed and an 1,800-foot long stainless steel ribbon that wraps around the building.

"It looks like a racetrack, like a high banked super speedway with lights on the outside that will chase each other around like it's in a race," said Tony Bircheler.  He's the Vice President for Zahner Company, the company building that distinctive ribbon.

The next stop is the main floor were race fans will get an introduction and see a movie.  From there, visitors will be able to enter "Race Week" which is the main exhibit hall. 

Upon entering "Heritage Speedway," you'll see a display of the history and three eras of NASCAR racing.

There's also a grand ballroom in the building that will be used to host various functions including Hall of Fame inductions.

We also saw the walkway that will lead from Hall to the Convention Center.  The ballroom and bridge make up $49 million of the $195 million budget.  The idea for the whole project is to create a building like no other.  The planners hope it will be a big draw, not only for race fans, but anyone looking for a new experience.

"It's something that's unique to Charlotte, there's only one NASCAR Hall of fame.  There are other football stadiums, other office buildings, but this is a unique project," said one builder.

The Hall has to be something that appeals to more than the casual NASCAR fan. 

While the building's iconic feature the mobius, may be tough to engineer it is a striking feature.

The Hall of fame is on schedule to open in spring of 2010.  The first big convention to visit the Hall is scheduled to be the National Rifle Association convention of 60,000 members, in May of 2010.  City leaders told us the NASCAR Hall was an important reason the NRA chose to come to Charlotte.