AIRWAY HEIGHTS -- Spokane County Raceway Park still has no operator and is still about $1 million in debt. While claims and lawsuits are being worked out, the county is scrambling to prepare for the upcoming season.
Last year, Bucky Austin made $2 million worth of improvements at Spokane County Raceway. Then, he ran out of money. And the county still has not found anyone to take it over.
"People in Spokane, they want to go racing. They want to come out and have a little fun," said racer Joe Klokkevold.
And that is what Klokkevold and his open-wheel racing friends had last year. They loved the improvements. They loved the events.
But it came at a cost. The county is holding $1 million bill for unpaid work. Old operator Bucky Austin left town. The county was supposed to have a new operator by Wednesday. So far, no one has formally applied to run the track. So, the county extended the deadline. It hopes changes to its agreement would garner more interest.
The main issues, the cost of the lease and liability. Commissioner Mark Richard says there are between four and six interested parties. The county has already tentatively made its summer schedule, including a NASCAR truck event.
The county still has legal issues from the old operator. It is a defendant in a wrongful death lawsuit filed by the family of a man killed there while working at the track. The county also owes dozens of contractors $1 million for all the upgrades they did to the facility.
