Proposal to bring NASCAR back to Nashville Fairgrounds Speedway approved by Fair Board

The effort to bring NASCAR back to the Nashville Fairgrounds Speedway took another significant step forward Tuesday night when the Nashville Fair Board approved Bristol Motor Speedway's proposal to renovate and lease the historic venue.

The commissioners, who met at the Expo Center at the fairgrounds, voted 3-2 in favor of the proposal after a lengthy discussion punctuated by outcry from spectators.

The process now moves to the Metropolitan Sports Authority and Nashville Metro Council for consideration.“We are thankful to the Nashville Fair Board for supporting the vision to restore the historic Fairgrounds Speedway,” said Jerry Caldwell, president and general manager of Bristol Motor Speedway.

“They invested a lot of time vetting this opportunity, and we agree it provides a financially responsible future for the speedway while shifting the risk off taxpayers to a private operator, and completes the restoration of the Fairgrounds with improvements like a state-of-the-art sound-reduction wall that benefits the surrounding neighborhoods. We look forward to working with the Metro Council in the weeks ahead and believe that they also will agree that this is a smart plan for the future of the Nashville Fairgrounds Speedway.”

Nashville Mayor John Cooper agreed in principle in December of 2021 with Bristol Motor Speedway to overhaul the 118-year-old venue.

On Nov. 9, Caldwell presented the proposal to the Fair Board with support from Butch Spyridon, CEO of the Nashville Convention & Visitors Corp., during the board's monthly meeting.

The proposed renovation would enter Bristol Motor Speedway into a long-term contract to lease, manage and maintain Nashville Fairgrounds Speedway.

NASCAR REALITY:Nashville Fairgrounds Speedway renovation, NASCAR one step closer to reality

Inside the deal

The proposal would fund track renovations and ongoing maintenance, according to Bristol Motor Speedway officials, and would not require any investment from the city's budget or obligation debt.

Instead, the deal would rely on revenue bonds issued by the Metro Sports Authority paired with a $17 million contribution from the state and another $17 million from the Nashville Convention & Visitors Corp.'s reserve fund (which is fueled by a portion of Nashville's hotel taxes). The Convention & Visitors Corp. contribution was added after a financial consultant determined the revenue estimates in the original deal proposal were too rosy.

The documents approved by the fair board contained some key changes. During the meeting, Bristol Motor Speedway representatives agreed to eliminate a provision that would have allowed the company to terminate the lease if the Fair Board established any rule that materially impacted BMS operations.

The term "ticket tax" was also changed to "seat use charge." Metro attorney Tom Cross said Bristol Motor Speedway sought the switch to have more "flexibility to not charge some users" and instead front any revenue those fees would have brought in. This change may also drop the threshold of Metro Council votes needed for the deal to pass — a "ticket tax" would need at least 27 votes to go through.

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NASCAR submitted a letter Tuesday stating its commitment to sustainable practices and its interest in using mufflers at select event spaces, as they have done on other tracks close to city centers.

Fair Board Commissioner Todd Hartley, a transactional lawyer who voted against the deal, said he believes the deal as-is still contains too many provisions that pose a risk to the city. More than 70 amendments were suggested, and Hartley said the majority of the changes he proposed were not implemented.

"I think there's a good deal to be had here, but unfortunately I don't think we've reached the threshold of a good deal," Hartley said.

Fair Board Commissioner Mario Avila, whose term is set to expire on March 30, also voted no, saying the deal isn't "the right deal for the city" due to the impact it would have on the surrounding community. Tuesday was his last Fair Board meeting, due to conflicts with work, he said.

Community impact concerns

Tuesday's approval came about two months after a sound engineering firm presented the Fair Board with a plan to cut perceived noise levels by half at the speedway. An official with the Texas-based firm Wrightson, Johnson, Haddon and Williams told the board that the noise reducer would include a 20-foot high sound-absorbing wall surrounding the speedway.

SOUND REDUCTION: Nashville Fairgrounds Speedway noise reduction plan includes 20-foot high sound wall

Community members in the neighborhoods around the racetrack have consistently voiced concerns about disruptive noise, increased traffic and Metro's financial exposure in the deal. On Tuesday, public speakers against the deal rejected the idea that it is about preserving history and local racing and said they didn't feel their concerns had been addressed. Union-backed group Stand Up Nashville and the Neighborhood Impact Advisory Council urged fair board members to vote against the proposal.

Members of the public speaking in support of the deal said it's long past time for the Nashville Fairgrounds Speedway to receive upgrades, and pointed to several public hearings held in previous weeks to address concerns. Goodlettsville Council member Zach Young also encouraged fair board members to pass the deal.

Fair Board Chair Sheri Weiner derided "inaccurate" claims made about the commission, Bristol and the mayor's administration. She "never believed that this would be anything but fraught with emotion, reactivity and meetings."

"What I've been intent on is to help the neighbors not have to live as they have," Weiner said. "Among the other areas that I was focused on … were not to have a financially lopsided deal (or) loopholes that we'd be sorry for later, (have) a collaborative scheduling plan, a system for parking and traffic management, and transparency and clarity for all those that were waiting, watching and worrying."

Reach Mike Organ at 615-259-8021 or on Twitter @MikeOrganWriter.

This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Fair Board approves proposal to bring NASCAR to Fairgrounds Speedway