Nascar Hall of Fame Leaves Charlotte Home With Bank Debt

Charlotte, where almost 30,000 people make a living off Nascar auto races, would seem the perfect place for a museum honoring driving legends such as Richard Petty and Dale Earnhardt.

As it turns out, the $192 million Nascar Hall of Fame, with vintage cars dating to the 1940s, is drawing fewer than half the visitors forecast when it opened in 2010, leading officials last month to use $5 million of public funds to settle bank loans. The move is raising questions about how North Carolina’s largest city has financed economic development.