Officials boost NASCAR Hall of Fame budget

CHARLOTTE, N.C., Sept. 23 (UPI) -- The Charlotte City Council agreed to increase the budget for the NASCAR Hall of Fame by $32 million.

The Charlotte (N.C.) Observer reported that the increase will cover unexpected building costs and boost exhibits at the museum, which is scheduled to open in April 2010.

Monday night's 9-2 vote takes the price tag for the Hall of Fame to $195 million, most of which will be paid for by a hotel occupancy tax.

Charlotte Mayor Pro Tem Susan Burgess was among council members who complained that the City Council should have been notified sooner that it original cost estimates weren't accurate.

"It would be helpful if we had a heads-up earlier than we did this time," she was quoted by the newspaper as saying.

Council members Patsy Kinsey and Michael Barnes opposed the increase. Kinsey said she couldn't support the expenditure at the same time many city residents are worrying about the economy, the Observer reported.