by Jon Styf
The owner of fellow Nashville Fairgrounds tenant Nashville SC spoke out in a letter to Nashville’s Metro Council against a deal to rebuild the Nashville Fairgrounds Speedway with a 30,000-seat grandstand.
The speedway deal, expected to cost taxpayers $120 million and first be discussed by the council in July, would include $86 million in Nashville Sports Authority bonds and $34 million combined from Tennessee and Nashville’s Convention and Visitors Corporation. The Nashville CVC funds come from a Davidson County hotel tax surplus.
Nashville Soccer Club Owner John Ingram wrote that the club is not against racing but are concerned about how an expanded racetrack will impact the community and fairgrounds campus.
“We are also concerned about having two 30,000-seat facilities literally side-by-side, which seems to be a recipe for disaster that could threaten the economic integrity of both projects, and not to mention the significant negative effect on the surrounding neighborhood and fan experiences.
“We have guaranteed our investment at the Fairgrounds, but if the expanded racetrack isn’t able to provide the revenue necessary to pay for the entire debt service, we will all pay the price.”
Former Fairgrounds board member Jason Bergeron has explained that Bristol Motor Speedway, who will operate the track, will not backstop the project if tax revenue is not sufficient to pay off the bonds.
It will cost an estimated $177.5 million to pay off the bonds over the 30-year lease at a 5.31% interest rate – with $6 million to $7 million in annual debt service – using a tax capture that includes ticket tax, rent from Bristol Motor Speedway, a sales tax capture, 5% revenue share, an annual $650,000 payment from the CVC and revenue from advertising and sponsors.
As part of the deal, Bristol will keep all proceeds from its four main race weekends.
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Jon Styf is an award-winning editor and reporter of The Center Square who has worked in Illinois, Texas, Wisconsin, Florida and Michigan in local newsrooms over the past 20 years, working for Shaw Media, Hearst and several other companies.
Photo “Nashville Fairgrounds Speedway” by Nashville Fairgrounds Speedway.
