Marysville is preferred site for NASCAR track
The site -- selected over other possibilities in Oregon and Kitsap County -- still faces several hurdles before construction begins, including who will pay for the project and whether it will pass environmental reviews. ``This basically says they`re here. This is the site they`ve chosen to pursue,`` Marysville mayor Dennis Kendall said at a news conference also attended by Snohomish County Executive Aaron Reardon and Lt. Gov. Brad Owen. The property being targeted for the racetrack is currently a mixture of farmland and light industrial, surrounded by housing subdivisions. Nearly all of the acreage is owned privately by a number of people and companies, Snohomish County spokesman Mark Funk said. Public and private funding will pay for the track, but government officials and International Speedway are still negotiating those details. They plan to release a plan Oct. 6 that outlines finances and other details such as property ownership once the track is built. The plan will be released to the Legislative Committee on Economic Development and International Relations. Owen, who called the legislative committee meeting, said, ``As long as we put together a package,`` the track will be built. Reardon said he hopes a funding plan will be approved during the 2005 legislative session. International Speedway officials could not attend the Monday news conference because of Hurricane Jeanne, Kendall said. ``We think that Marysville is going to be a great spot for a major motor sports facility and we`re excited about working with them to make it a reality,`` ISC spokesman David Talley said from company headquarters in Daytona Beach, Fla. The $140 million Great Northwest Speedway would be built on farmland and would open in 2008. It would seat up to 75,000 spectators for one major racing event a year and up to five minor races. The site also would be used for other purposes such as swap meets and antique car shows. The overall project -- including land acquisition, support facilities and permits -- could cost as much as $300 million. Funk said a King County economic development study estimated revenues of $87 million to $127 million for a track in the state. That could vary depending on the track`s location. Other benefits of the track could include environmental improvements and a chance for the county to do some master planning around a large piece of property, Funk said. ``And frankly, it kind of fits into the family kind of recreation we have in Snohomish County,`` Funk added. Other sites that had been proposed included one in Kitsap County on the west side of Puget Sound and two in western Oregon. Reardon said ISC chose the Snohomish County site because ``they like our moxie and they know we`re serious about making it work.`` The Snohomish County track proposal has already drawn opposition from Snohomish County Citizens Against a Racetrack, or SCAR, which complained about new traffic congestion. Co-founder Jack Shouman said the organization also feels local businesses would not benefit from the track and road construction dollars would have to be reallocated from other projects around the state. ``We just don`t want to be trapped in our community on race days,`` said Shouman, who says he moved to Marysville to escape traffic congestion in King County. Supporters have formed Fans United for NASCAR, anticipating the project would create jobs and be good business for the county. ISC, whose tracks are used for NASCAR stock-car races and other motor sports, has been looking at possible Northwest sites for months. The company expects to draw fans from as far north as Vancouver, British Columbia, and as far south as Portland, Ore. The ISC owns or operates 12 major tracks in the country and stages 100 races a year. NASCAR uses those facilities as well as tracks operated by Charlotte, N.C.-based Speedway Motorsports and local companies, spokesman Talley said. David Porter, executive director of the Kitsap Regional Economic Development Council, said he received a call from ISC saying Kitsap County`s proposed site near the Bremerton airport was out of the running. Drew Mahalic, CEO of the Oregon Sports Authority, said he received a call last weekend from the ISC, indicating that Marysville was their first choice for the new track. ``We weren`t able to come up with the kind of site that had all the ideal parameters that Marysville had,`` Mahalic said. International Speedway has hired a Seattle law firm, Preston Gates &, Ellis, to advise it on Washington state business law. It has also signed up Gogerty Stark Marriott, a Seattle firm whose principal, Bob Gogerty, managed Paul Allen`s 1997 campaign to build Seahawks Stadium. Voters approved a $300 million funding package for that project in 1997.
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