New Tracks: At Least Five Years
International Speedway Corp. Chief Operating Officer John Saunders said Thursday that the earliest a track could open in New York City or Seattle likely will be 2011. Talking with financial analysts to discuss the company's earnings, Saunders said the slow-moving process in trying to get the political backing necessary to earn governmental approvals have delayed the projects. ISC hopes to build a 1.2-mile track southwest of Seattle and a three-quarter-mile track on New York's Staten Island.
"We are realistically now, because of some of the regulatory and the political process in both the state of Washington and state of New York, 2011 will be more likely" Saunders said. "We were hopeful for 2010, but it appears it will be more [like] 2011."
He remained optimistic when talking about New York City even though Staten Island's representatives on the City Council have vowed to defeat the project. "Obviously the politics have heated up in New York, and there have been a lot of letter-writing campaigns," Saunders said. "We're not ready to leave this yet, even though it seems like an uphill battle. There are indicators there that suggest that we should stay in there and go through the regulatory and political process."
Saunders said recent meetings in Washington have gone well, and the project has momentum. "We are continuing to solicit additional grass roots and legislative support and expect to make a decision later in the year whether to introduce the [financial] legislation in 2007," Saunders said.(Scene Daily)
International Speedway Corp. Chief Operating Officer John Saunders said Thursday that the earliest a track could open in New York City or Seattle likely will be 2011. Talking with financial analysts to discuss the company's earnings, Saunders said the slow-moving process in trying to get the political backing necessary to earn governmental approvals have delayed the projects. ISC hopes to build a 1.2-mile track southwest of Seattle and a three-quarter-mile track on New York's Staten Island.
"We are realistically now, because of some of the regulatory and the political process in both the state of Washington and state of New York, 2011 will be more likely" Saunders said. "We were hopeful for 2010, but it appears it will be more [like] 2011."
He remained optimistic when talking about New York City even though Staten Island's representatives on the City Council have vowed to defeat the project. "Obviously the politics have heated up in New York, and there have been a lot of letter-writing campaigns," Saunders said. "We're not ready to leave this yet, even though it seems like an uphill battle. There are indicators there that suggest that we should stay in there and go through the regulatory and political process."
Saunders said recent meetings in Washington have gone well, and the project has momentum. "We are continuing to solicit additional grass roots and legislative support and expect to make a decision later in the year whether to introduce the [financial] legislation in 2007," Saunders said.(Scene Daily)