Fueling hopes for NASCAR

Talks in early stages for superspeedway in Commerce City

Chris Barge, Rocky Mountain News

Tuesday, September 12, 2006

Dreams of bringing the loud engines of a NASCAR superspeedway to the metro area quietly are taking hold in Commerce City.

City officials said Monday agents for International Speedway Corp. are trying to piece together a land deal that could place the racetrack complex west of Denver International Airport, around 96th Avenue and E-470.

The plans still are in preliminary stages and nothing official has been submitted to the city's planning department.

But racetrack representatives were in talks with former city manager Perry Vandeventer before he was forced to resign earlier this month amid accusations of repeated drunken driving.

Mayor Sean Ford said Vandeventer updated him on the NASCAR talks before packing up his office.

"He just said that last he knew they were still compiling the land," Ford said.

"From what I understand, it's going to be a major stock car and road track - maybe a home for the Bandimeres and for a Grand Prix," City Councilman Anthony Johnson said.

Drag racing pioneer John Bandimere Jr., owner of Bandimere Speedway in Morrison, confirmed he was approached about a month ago by an agent for the proposed racing complex.

"I had been asked if we would want to be a part of it, and my answer was, 'Not sure. Have to wait and see if what you're talking about is real,' " he said.

Bandimere has reason to fly the caution flag. He pinned his hopes on moving to a larger track in Aurora six years ago only to watch it drive into a ditch.

Developers there were pushing for a similar superspeedway to that being mulled today near the airport.

But noise-conscious voters cried foul and passed a city referendum outlawing a racetrack in Aurora.

Denver remains ripe for a superspeedway, especially because last year ISC bought out the owners of Pikes Peak International Raceway in Fountain. That track had hosted NASCAR Busch and Craftsman Truck series races.

ISC has sat on the property since then, fueling speculation the company bought the track to rev up demand for a Denver-area NASCAR complex.

ISC did not return a call for comment.

A company spokesman said last month that while ISC is trying to expand, "there is nothing that has been announced" in Colorado.

Adams County Assessor's records show three properties totaling 950 acres at 96th Avenue and E-470 went through foreclosure three years ago.

"Tower 88 Co." bought them for the price of their back taxes and flipped them as one property the next year for $10.5 million.

Commerce City's Johnson said the possibility of a speedway in his town is "huge" and "exciting."

But he said the council is worried about placing a speedway so close to Reunion, a development where 40,000 new homes are slated for construction during the next 20 years.

bargec@RockyMountainNews.com or 303-954-5059