‘It’s getting worse’: Aurora neighbors share street racing frustrations

AURORA, Colo. (KDVR) — It’s a sight seen again and again: street racers taking over intersections, creating chaos in quiet neighborhoods.

For neighbors in one Aurora community, a recent incident hit too close to home.

The intersection of Nome Street and Park East Road is home to young families, retirees and even home care patients. FOX31 spoke to several neighbors who say a street racing event nearly two weeks ago still feels very unsettling.

Many neighbors, like Mike McMillan, love the quiet neighborhood.

“It’s been like going back in time to my childhood living here,” McMillan said. “It was all the reason I wanted to buy this house, because it reminded me of the ’70s, when I grew up. They are still delivering milk to the front door, if you subscribe to that.”

He has been living there for 15 years, but lately, things have taken a disruptive turn.

“It’s really just the squealing, the constant screeching of tires. You know that sound, the burning of tires,” McMillan said.

That sound and the revving of engines can be heard from street racers as far as a mile away from his home.

“Loud as can be,” McMillan said. “Drowning out my TV with the windows shut, and I’m several blocks away.”

McMillan said he is a car enthusiast and owns antique cars himself.

“So I enjoy the hobby. I understand the hobby of being a part of it for 30-plus years. But it’s not something I ever thought about doing around my house in all the places that I’ve ever lived,” he said.

‘Flash mob’ street racers disrupting neighborhoods

Neighbors living close by say the disruptive flash-mob car racing happens in the parking lot of Concorde Career College on Havana Street every Sunday beginning at 8:30 p.m.

Tire tracks could be seen in the parking lot Thursday evening. Staff told FOX31 that on Monday mornings, they will pick up beer cans and, often, shell casings.

“It’s an automotive flash mob of hundreds of people whose sole purpose is to do donuts and make social media videos on their phones. Oftentimes, they shoot guns in the air, and where are those bullets landing? Anyone’s guess,” he said.

He also shared photos with FOX31 of street racing at Del Mar Park, blocks away from his home.

“We’re not talking two to three cars. We’re taking 50, 100, 200 cars gathering,” he said.

Street racing getting closer to home, Aurora neighbors say

What worries him is now those events are making their way into his neighborhood.

“We’re starting to see already with the donuts in front of my house. I heard it. First it woke me up. I was able to peek through the window and actually witness it happening on both laps,” he said.

The Aurora Police Department told FOX31: “We cracked down on illegal street racing last year and we plan to continue those efforts. It’s a highly dangerous activity and we have seen serious injuries as the result of street racing.”

McMillan worries if nothing is done to stop street racing, there could be damaging or deadly consequences.

“As part of their patrol, if they would patrol the area a couple times per week or whatever their schedule will allow just to have a visual presence — especially at dusk, that seems to be the time people start to think differently about their actions — that would be helpful,” he said. “We’re all frustrated, we’ve all witnessed something in the area, and it’s been getting worse. And it doesn’t seem to be any proactive measure from the police department.”

Aurora police say if people are caught street racing illegally, law enforcement has the authority to impound the involved vehicle. Drivers, passengers and people who attend street-racing events also may be subject to summonses and arrests.

If you see street racing in your neighborhood, you can report it online at ReportStreetRacing.com , which sends an anonymous tip to law enforcement.

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