$50 million resort planned at Pocono Raceway

After shelving slots casino idea, track owner proposes rental units with amenities.

The owner of Pocono Raceway plans to build a $50 million resort next to the track at Long Pond, replacing the proposal for a $300 million slots casino that he dropped in December.Joseph Mattioli said the 250-unit Raceway Village would be a gated community with two- and four-bedroom houses and one- and two-bedroom apartments. It would include a clubhouse with an indoor swimming pool, a sauna, theater and lounge, along with outdoor tennis and basketball courts and a bocce court.

''It will be an extended-stay concept,'' Mattioli said. ''There will be rentals for a long weekend, a week, two weeks or the whole season for skiing.'' He said people attending NASCAR races, held in June and July, would be able to walk to the track.Mattioli said he has not set rental prices, but added the resort in Tunkhannock Township would be ''high-end.'' He had an engineer draw plans for it 25 or 30 years ago but put off the project because he was improving the raceway.Then last year, Mattioli considered applying for a license to build a casino that would hold as many as 5,000 slot machines and stand near the racetrack.But Mattioli learned he would have to use professionals in the gambling industry instead of his close-knit family to run the business, so he decided against applying to the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board for a license. ''We realized it wasn't our cup of tea,'' he said. Instead, he decided to pursue the resort project. ''It's something that has been on the back of my mind for a long time,'' he said.When Mattioli bowed out of the contest for slots licenses from the state, that left the owners of Mount Airy Lodge in Paradise Township and Pocono Manor in Tobyhanna Township as competitors in the Poconos.Six companies are seeking licenses for stand-alone slots casinos across the state, including one in Allentown and another in Bethlehem.Mattioli, 81, has seven grandchildren and two great-grandchildren. His oldest grandson is running the Blakeslee Inn, and the second-oldest grandson is running a racetrack in South Boston, Va.He said his granddaughter, Ashley Igdalsky, would operate Raceway Village. ''Ashley is ready to run this operation,'' he said.Mattioli said he tries to give family members ''a piece of the action so they can run with it.'' He said all the family helps at the racetrack, but he also wants them to have their own endeavors.Robert Uguccioni, executive director of the Pocono Mountains Vacation Bureau, said the development would be a ''win-win'' for Tunkhannock and the Pocono Mountain School District.He said Mattioli would pay property taxes on the development, but it won't result in any more children attending the already growing school district, which is building a new middle school and opened a second high school a few years ago. ''That's a great formula,'' Uguccioni said.Uguccioni said the Mattioli family would build the project properly. ''It won't be mediocre or half-baked facilities,'' he said, adding other tracks have sprouted similar developments. A call to NASCAR's headquarters in Daytona Beach, Fla., was not returned Wednesday.Mattioli said other Pocono amenities would benefit. He said the resort would not have a restaurant, so people would use area restaurants.Before building, Mattioli needs a change in Tunkhannock zoning. The proposed site is in a district zoned residential. Mattioli said that can be addressed by putting in an overlay district that would allow him to develop a specific commercial project.Mattioli's attorney is expected to petition the township for the changes.Mattioli said once he has township approval, development could start in only two weeks because he plans to use modular homes and apartments.

A Flashback

Jimmie Johnson was the picture of cool after his trip to Victory Lane, mugging for cameras, swigging champagne and using a little math to figure out how close he was to the points lead. He hardly looked like a driver who almost had a win pulled out from under him. Johnson used a near-flawless performance to overcome a NASCAR mistake and won another caution-filled race Sunday at Pocono Raceway. "We were just fast all the way through," Johnson said. "The pit stops were fast, the race car was fast, the driver was fast." Johnson controlled most of the Pocono 500 for his second win in three weeks, third this year and ninth of his career. He's led 820 miles in the last three races and has two more seconds in his last five.

A Guide to Pocono

Teams have been frustrated this year by rule changes and hard racing with other teams. A lot of angry words have been exchanged, and Pocono can also be a very frustrating track.
NASCAR on FOX: PoconoSat., June 11: Federated Auto Parts presented by Crestor on FX, 7:30 p.m. ET-->Sun., June 12: Nextel Cup Racing presented by Subway on FOX, 1 p.m. ET
Photo Gallery...Biffle masters Monster Mile
Also...
Race Trax Results Standings
Poll: Who's the sexiest driver?
Riding with Junior: Dover
Gilmore: Truex Cup contract ready
Analysis...DW: Biffle's heart and soul SPENCER: BYRNES: Driver dedicated to troops BEHRENDT: Making their Points Every lap, cars fan out on the frontstretch, trying to find a line and a position to pass going into Turn 1. There are areas to pass, but the cars are so equal now that Pocono could provide more of the same frustration that we've seen this season. Even though there weren't as many caution flags at Dover as there were a week before at Lowe's, there's just so much intensity and desperation now because teams realize that it's a 26-race schedule.
Who to Watch
Mark Martin: Looking at Martin's Pocono numbers, his record at the track is amazing to me. He has more top fives than any active driver at Pocono — 18 top-fives in 36 starts. That's phenomenal. Even though he hasn't won, he's been in the top five 18 times! We had him on Trackside last week (Fridays at 7 p.m. ET on SPEED), and he's having so much fun. He has so much confidence in his race team so he could break his Pocono winless streak very easily.
Jimmie Johnson: You're almost surprised that he's only had six starts at Pocono because he's already got three top-fives, two wins and a pole.
Jeff Gordon: As badly as the 24 team has fared the past three weeks, Gordon has led over 800 laps at Pocono which speaks for itself. You have to look at the 24 this week.
Rusty Wallace will be a factor. It's great to see Wallace and Martin in the top 10 as they bid farewell to the series. Wallace has a lot of momentum as well.

Kyle Busch has been really impressive. Every week, he surprises me. He goes to racetracks where he's never raced, and he qualifies well and runs up front. You can see his confidence growing every week. He could be the darkhorse there.
Ryan Newman: Like Johnson, he's got three top fives in six starts. He was leading another race there before bowing out with an engine problem.
What to Watch
Gear rule's first test: Larry McReynolds made a point on this week's NASCAR on FOX conference call that we've heard about this gear and transmission rule all season, but this week will be the first really big test for this rule. Even with the over-drive transmissions, teams are concerned about losing engines.
Engine unknown: With over-drive transmissions in the past, Pocono was tough on engines. With NASCAR's new gear rule, shifting isn't required, and engine builders are scared to death of this race. I've used this phrase a lot this year, but we're back in the great unknown.
Pleasure and terror in Turn 1: Ken Schrader describes going down the front straightaway as 15 seconds of sheer pleasure followed by five seconds of sheer terror going into Turn 1. You're braking, turning and accelerating at the same time. In person, it's hard to believe that one of those big racecars can slow down and turn left into Turn 1.

Camber concerns: Teams have had problems setting the camber on the right front tire at Pocono. They get too aggressive, which can cause a problem.
Compromising situations: So many different factors play a role in running well at Pocono. Obviously horsepower is important and getting off of the corners is important. For years, the prevailing wisdom was rob Peter to pay Paul. You would compromise. You would give up on one corner to be good in the other two, but recently, teams are striving to be perfect in all three corners. That's very difficult to do.
Early Sunday morning at Dover, I was walking around the garage, and I saw Jeremy Mayfield's crew chief, Richard "Slugger" Labbe.
I said, "Hey Slugger, you've got a second?"
He said, "Yeah."
I said, "Hey, I'm in your pit box today, and I just wanted to check and see how you guys were doing."
He said, "Well, my racecar is great, but I've lost 12 pounds in a week. I'm going to the care center."
Labbe did not look good, and he was diagnosed with Rocky Mountain spotted fever.
Finish LineTo be honest, I wouldn't be surprised to see three-time Pocono winner Dale Jarrett have a good run this weekend, but by the same token, we're starting on a blank page. Certainly Jarrett knows how to get around Pocono, but it really is a blank sheet of paper. Although I listed my favorites above, don't be surprised if at least 20 drivers are competitive and have a shot at winning this race.

Race Preview

Superspeedway that drives like a road course: The most unusual track layout on the NASCAR schedule. Pocono Raceway has a massive front straight that often sees cars going four, five and six wide. Add the high speeds to the challenging turns and you've got a 2.5 mile superspeedway that drives like a road course.
The Track: Pocono Speedway is a 2.5 mile three-cornered speedway. The triangle-shaped track has three different corner lengths and bankings making it very difficult to set up a car and to drive well. Pocono is, in a word, unique.
As difficult as it is to set up and drive Pocono frequently hosts some great racing with races often decided within the last couple of laps.
Race Distance: 200 laps = 500 miles
The Big Picture: This is race number 14 of 36. We are halfway to the cutoff. It is time to make your move if you want to race for The Chase.
The current points top ten are: 1. Jimmie Johnson 1,912. 2. Greg Biffle 1,866. 3. Elliott Sadler 1,681. 4. Ryan Newman 1,672. 5. Tony Stewart 1,606. 6. Mark Martin 1,588. 7. Rusty Wallace 1,584. 8. Kurt Busch 1,579. 9. Carl Edwards 1,574. 10. Kevin Harvick 1,573.
Storylines: You'll hear a lot this week about the long front straightaway. At 3,740 feet the NEXTEL Cup cars reach 200MPH. Drivers actually shift part way down the straight. This is hard on transmissions and a missed shift can end your day early.
The emphasis is truly on handling. Forget about turn one and the tunnel turn. The secret to being fast at Pocono is getting through the sweeping turn three which dumps you out onto the front stretch. If you can be fast there you'll put together fast laptimes.