Posted on 12/16/2004 6:22:29 AM PST by SheLion
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (AP) -- International Speedway Corp. has paid $100 million to buy land in Staten Island to build a New York City track.
The company, which owns or operates 11 of NASCAR's major tracks, hopes to build a $600 million facility on dormant industrial land. Officials said Wednesday it could represent the largest construction project the motorsports giant has undertaken, nearly triple the amount it spent to build tracks in Kansas City, Kan., and the Chicago area.
Lesa France Kennedy, president of the family-controlled ISC, said the company has to complete a feasibility study before deciding whether to build the facility. The France family also controls NASCAR, the world's premier stock car racing circuit.
``Whether we ultimately construct a track or pursue alternative options for the development of this prime New York real estate will largely depend on the results of this study,'' Kennedy said.
Speedway officials were expected to elaborate on their New York plans Thursday in a call with financial analysts.
Kennedy said the track probably could not be completed until 2009 or 2010. The parcels that were purchased by an ISC subsidiary, 380 Development, include a 450-acre waterfront tract owned by GATX Corp., and a 1-acre parcel bought from an unidentified owner.
The subsidiary also plans to spend $10 million to buy an additional 236 acres from Duke Energy in January. In all, ISC wants to acquire 660 acres, which it said would be the largest undeveloped block of land within New York City.
The land near the Goethals Bridge would house a three-quarter-mile track with 80,000 seats and a 50-acre group of nationally known stores. ICS officials said a New York developer, Related Retail Corp., will hold a minority stake in the venture.
Officials did not disclose what financial incentives they have requested from New York City and other agencies.
New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg previously has voiced doubts about traffic jams that might be generated by the track. Neither the mayor nor city council members representing Staten Island could be reached for comment Wednesday night.
Several Staten Island political leaders, including borough President James Molinaro, have been supportive of the project, saying it would rejuvenate land that is now a defunct oil tank farm.
Ping!
could not be completed until 2009 or 2010
When the union thugs insist on doing ALL the work, they better double the budget and double the time frame for completion.
Will it be the Jimmy Hoffa Memorial Race Track and Burial Ground?
Union thugs? They will get involved in this, you think?
Catchy name. heh! :)
Back in the day when a race (CanAm) was proposed for Central Park, the editorials were hysterical (and funny) and totally misinformed.
The rants will be worth a morning laugh.
France family could MANUFACTURE an artifical island off NY coast for half that price and have no problems with NOISE laws.
I'm pretty excited about it. I've been to Loudon, but because of my work schedule and working 7 days a week, it would be awesome to have a Nextel/Sprint Nextel/< insert yearly sponsorship name here> Cup track within an hour-and-a-half drive.
I don't know if anyone has seen another developer's plan to build an indoor super speedway in Plainfield, CT with hope of getting a Cup race. Very strange concept that has been struck down once by the town but he has since resubmitted addressing some of their previous concerns. Don't know how that will all work out but it is intriguing.
The only thing coming further north is the weather.
We ran a small asphalt track in northern Maine and if it wasn't windy and cold, it was raining. Can't count on a full season.
CT should be ok though. But the weather is lousy for tracks.
A year ago during lunch with a Fox network apprentice, I brought up the gaining popularity of NASCAR. She made it clear that I, being from the South, did not know what I was talking about, and she, being from the Northeast, knew that NASCAR was just a redneck sport that she and her friends liked to mock.
As John Wayne once said: "That'll be the day..."
Looks like that day has arrived, and Fox sports will be covering it.
My 7yo son and I make the rounds to 3 local short tracks during the summer (all within an hour of Hartford, try to make it to one a week). They all stagger their main races on Thurs, Fri and Saturday nights with one offering entry-level races on Wed. Essentially no mods except for a roll-bar and a fuel cell (Heckuva lot of fun for $5.00 Adults Under 12 Free!). Anyway, we probably lose two or three racing weeks a year to the rain here in southern N.E.
I'll see if I can find an article on that indoor track and post it here.
Who says the South didn't win the Civil War? :D
Staten Island, aka Sicily West, is only part of New York due to a little boat race that happened over 200 years ago. Its always been an outlier from the other four boroughs, both politically and culturally. Its a good location for a NASCAR track knowing the demographics.
Heheh! I can't remember any redneck having THAT kind of money. :)
Ok, great!
I know the Monster Truck Shows preform in doors, but with NASCAR, I wonder what kind of an exhaust system they would have. Think about it. The fumes and the fires they sometimes have. I'm not sure about having NASCAR in doors. It would have to be a HUGE place.
PLAINFIELD PLANNERS REJECT RACE TRACK
The Westerly (RI) Sun
by The Associated Press and Sun Staff
PLAINFIELD -- NASCAR -- or any other auto racing series -- won't be coming to town anytime soon.
This northeast Connecticut town's Planning and Zoning Commission Thursday night dealt a fatal blow to plans for an indoor, 100,000-plus seat auto racetrack and convention center, rejecting a change to local zoning regulations that would have allowed the development.
Commissioners voted 3-2 against the zoning change at a special meeting attended by about 250 people.
Trumbull developer Gene Arganese -- who had initially proposed a track for North Stonington -- had pushed the $343-million plan, which included the domed racetrack, convention center, a 700-room hotel and 800,000-square-foot retail complex.
Arganese had hoped to attract NASCAR, Busch National, Indy and CART events to the New England Raceway track, along with drag races, concerts and trade shows.
Planning and Zoning Commission Chairwoman Gloria Rizer cast the deciding vote against the zone change, joining members John Dubois and John Meyer. Dennis Jolley and Ron Boisse voted for the racetrack.
Rizer said it was the hardest decision she had to make while serving on the board. She agonized for several minutes before voting.
Commission members opposed to the racetrack said the proposal would not be consistent with the town's plan of conservation and development.
Arganese looked stunned after the vote.
"We're going to regroup and see what we do next," he said. "We have other towns in mind. We have a backup location."
Arganese refused to say where the alternate site was.
First Selectman Donald Gladding supported the racetrack, saying that any increases in traffic, noise and inconvenience would have been outweighed by tax revenues, jobs and economic development. A study commissioned by Arganese said the proposal would have generated roughly $19 million in local tax revenue.
Opponents of the racetrack, who questioned the long-term job outlook and the lack of commitments from NASCAR and other major racing organizations, cheered after the vote.
"I'm just glad the Planning and Zoning Commission voted for what's best for Plainfield," said Dave Ertsgard, president of the Concerned Citizens for the Quiet Corner, one of three organized groups opposing the track. "This sends a message to any developer that while Plainfield my be a rural, sleepy town, we sleep with one eye open."
A study prepared by the Connecticut Center for Economic Analysis at the University of Connecticut predicted that the track and surrounding facilities would provide a total of 6,145 jobs at the beginning, with the numfer growing to 8,750 jobs by 2007. The survey predicted those jobs would decline to 5,910 by 2025.
Ertsgard said more than half the jobs would be construction jobs that would only last two years.
He also said the facility could only support many of the permanent jobs if it got solid commitments for big racing events, such as the NASCAR Busch Series and Indy Racing League events.
But from the start -- when Arganese first proposed his track for North Stonington -- NASCAR officials have said they had not held talks with Arganese about any specific race plans. NASCAR's season schedule, which runs from February through late November, does not have any open dates; any race that would be held in Connecticut would have to involve moving an existing race from its current site.
Here is the website set up by the developer. Not very thorough but gives you an idea of the proposal.
It's a perfect match. Both specialize in relentless turns to the left.
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