On a NASCAR track
Officials confirm that Snohomish County is the preferred location for a new racetrack
By Scott Morris
Everett Herald,Wash.,September 28

The green flag dropped Monday on news that has been anticipated with cheers and fears throughout the region.

Snohomish County Executive Aaron Reardon, Marysville Mayor Dennis Kendall and Lt. Gov. Brad Owen confirmed that Marysville is the preferred site for NASCAR in the Northwest.

Snohomish County Executive Aaron Reardon (left), Lt. Gov. Brad Owen and Marysville Mayor Dennis Kendall laugh at a press conference Monday announcing the Snohomish County site for a racetrack is under further consideration by the International Speedway Corp

"We're looking forward to racing by 2008," Kendall said.

The International Speedway Corp., or ISC, had been considering two sites in Washington and at least two in Oregon to build a 75,000-seat racetrack capable of handling NASCAR's top-level stock car races.

Now, ISC is focusing exclusively on Marysville, Reardon said.

The Florida-based racetrack development company was unable to send representatives to the news conference because of Hurricane Jeanne, ISC spokesman David Talley said.

When reached by phone, Talley explained what "preferred site" means.

"As the preferred location, our talks will be exclusively with Marysville," he said.

That news was a big disappointment for Oregon race fans.

Drew Mahalic, chief executive officer of the Oregon Sports Authority in Portland, a nonprofit big-league sports booster, said the main two sites in Oregon just couldn't compete with Marysville.

"I think the key advantage Marysville had that we were not able to find down here were major highways," Mahalic said.

One site in rural Scapoose had plenty of acres but only one state highway for access. Troutdale, east of Portland, was closer but ultimately not available for a track. The speedway company wanted a site within 60 miles of Seattle or Portland, but that proved too difficult, he said.

In Bremerton, the other site in the state, officials from Kitsap County could not be reached for comment.

The only way those other sites could get back in the running is if an unforeseen deal-breaking circumstance in Marysville were to arise, Talley said.

'Warming up'

At the news conference, Reardon still left open a small chance of walking away from a deal.

"While many in my office have been saying, 'Snohomish County, start your engines,' I've been saying, we're just warming up," Reardon said.

That's because many questions about how to pay for and build the track will need to be answered quickly.

County planner Tom Barnett in a March 5 memo warned that ISC has an "aggressive timeline" and to make a reality of its plans to begin races by summer 2008, a "coordinated and strenuous effort from all parties" will be needed, including state and federal agencies.

Owen's presence Monday was evidence of the first step. As the chairman of a joint House and Senate committee on economic development, Owen will convene those state legislators Oct. 6 in Olympia to hear proposals from Reardon and ISC.

The meeting will allow lawmakers to hear what the state is being asked to do to make the track happen.

Track financing

A key hurdle will be how to pay for the project. The track will cost about $140 million, but fixing nearby roads - including a new interchange at 152nd Street NE - and environmental costs could jack up the project's price tag to $300 million, Kendall said.

State Rep. Brian Sullivan, D-Mukilteo, and Rep. John McCoy, D-Tulalip, are working on bills to propose when the legislative session begins in January.

Sullivan said the political challenge is finding a way to tap into sales tax revenues from the track to help pay off taxpayer-funded construction bonds.

Such arrangements "have not been very popular with the Democratic leadership in Olympia," Sullivan said.

A big political hurdle will be state Sen. Mary Margaret Haugen, D-Camano Island. Haugen is against public financing for the track and said she would use her power as the ranking Democrat on the Senate transportation committee to lobby against state money for a new freeway interchange at 152ndStreet.

"I get heartburn when these companies come to government and say, 'What can you do for me?' " she said. "We have a billion-dollar shortfall in this state, and there are so many other things we need to focus on.

"This is something I'm going to stand firm on," she said. "I'm not going to change my mind."

The chairman of the transportation committee, Sen. Jim Horn, R-Mercer Island, said he'd consider supporting a new interchange if ISC asks for one.

"We'll certainly take a look at what their demands are," Horn said. "This could mean a lot of new jobs."

But he said he's concerned that so many nearby residents oppose the project. "This must have the support of the local people," he said.

Sen. Val Stevens, R-Arlington, said she's open-minded about allocating state money for transportation improvements around the racetrack. But she's against using state money to help build the track.

McCoy acknowledged that tax breaks to ISC would be a tough sell to legislators, but he's open to the idea because of its economic benefits.

Other issues

Local officials have been busy anticipating other issues, too.

Documents show that at a June 16 meeting, planners for the county and Marysville identified more than 20 issues that could constrain track development.

Among the concerns are proximity to salmon-bearing streams, wetlands and high groundwater tables. The Olympic Pipeline cuts across the site, which is bordered by the Arlington Airport on the north and railroad tracks on the east.

The area surrounding the track site also has for more than a decade been earmarked for residential and light commercial development. An analysis by The Herald found more than 17,000 people living within a two-mile area around the track site. That's more than 6,000 homes, U.S. Census records show.

The people there will get more than a racetrack, though, Kendall said. The project includes keeping as much as 700 acres in grassy open space for parking around the 150-acre track site. Much of parking could be used as athletic fields and parks when big events are not scheduled.

"We like to look at it as an opportunity to have a large park that just happens to have a racetrack in it for six days out of the year," Kendall said.

Mixed reactions

The groups Fans United for NASCAR, or FUN, and Snohomish County Citizens Against a Racetrack, or SCAR, attended the news conference.

Carla Brown of SCAR questioned the wisdom of promoting a track, which would only support about 50 full-time jobs, instead of traditional commercial development. Reardon said the track would attract adjacent commercial development.

Diana Moss, a track supporter, said SCAR blows things out of proportion. "If it wasn't possible, ISC would not be looking here," she said.

County Councilman Jeff Sax, who worked with Monroe officials when leaders there tried to land the new racetrack, said the announcement was welcome news.

"I'm just tickled," Sax said. "It doesn't matter to me where it goes in the county."

"I think it's good for all the parties, pro or con, to have a decision made because now we can start getting into the nuts and bolts of the permitting issues," he said.

County Councilman John Koster, whose district includes the speedway site, said he is still trying to find answers for constituents.

"It's not a surprise to me that this area is going to grow and change," Koster said. "But this is very rapid change."