ANOTHER ONE BITES THE DUST? SHAWNEE COUNTY APPRAISER, HEARTLAND PARK OWNER AT ODDS

[mikebcurve]

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[ironpony]

so like a lot of tracks he is running in the negative/break even range and he wants the county to give in. He has not paid taxes in 7 years. yes we need tracks but if it is a failing business model, either accept the loss or move on.
not paying your bills is unacceptable

 

[Sherman, Sherm, & Sherm Gun]

Same old BS. In the end, the track will close, and he will have paid nothing in taxes. I'm pretty sure if I owed $3m in taxes, I would be in jail.

He bought the old circle track near Odessa, Missouri, turning the asphalt oval into dirt. It has been running for a couple of years now. He claims that they are building a drag strip there, too. That is where the threat of taking his events to Missouri comes from. I look for news a few times a year, and I haven't seen them do anything beyond grading for the drag strip. Although, there was a lot of building materials laying around last time I looked for updated photos.

I-70 Motorsports Park

 

[Sherman, Sherm, & Sherm Gun]

Doesn't he own Columbus, too?

 

[jgrigz]

How can he build a track in Kansas City when he can't afford the one he has?

 

[Ponyhntr]

Same old BS. In the end, the track will close, and he will have paid nothing in taxes. I'm pretty sure if I owed $3m in taxes, I would be in jail.

He bought the old circle track near Odessa, Missouri, turning the asphalt oval into dirt. It has been running for a couple of years now. He claims that they are building a drag strip there, too. That is where the threat of taking his events to Missouri comes from. I look for news a few times a year, and I haven't seen them do anything beyond grading for the drag strip. Although, there was a lot of building materials laying around last time I looked for updated photos.

I-70 Motorsports Park

Payne has recently sold the land for the dragstrip to another gentleman that is actively working on it. They are supposed to have walls and electrical done by the end of next month. Concrete and asphalt will be next, and they are hoping to have a completed racing surface by the end of October. May not have any events this season, but will be ready to go in the spring of 2024. I have met the new majority owner, and am friends with his minority partner, who is a racer himself. Will be NHRA sanctioned.

Flying H Dragstrip Facebook Page

Doesn't he own Columbus, too?

Sold it a few years ago.

How can he build a track in Kansas City when he can't afford the one he has?

He isn't, see my above reply to Justin.

 

[ironpony]

Doesn't he own Columbus, too?

IIRC yes.

How can he build a track in Kansas City when he can't afford the one he has?

some business people use the "excuse" it is business to not pay debts, not because they can't. I am sure he has plenty of cash to pay them. Prime example he can't pay the taxes but can build a new track.


EDIT: see above post I stand corrected.

 

[Sherman, Sherm, & Sherm Gun]

Payne has recently sold the land for the dragstrip to another gentleman that is actively working on it. They are supposed to have walls and electrical done by the end of next month. Concrete and asphalt will be next, and they are hoping to have a completed racing surface by the end of October. May not have any events this season, but will be ready to go in the spring of 2024. I have met the new majority owner, and am friends with his minority partner, who is a racer himself. Will be NHRA sanctioned.

Flying H Dragstrip Facebook Page

Kick Ass!!! Thanks for the update!

 

[none]

The Heartland park tax story has been going on forever. More than likely the outcome won’t be good for racing.

 

[mikebcurve]

I assumed the whole tax drama was in the rear view mirror. Hadn’t heard anything about it for years. How does it get drug out that long? What a mess!

I see it mentioned he sold Columbus. I didn’t know that. Does anyone know who the current owners are?

 

[Sherman, Sherm, & Sherm Gun]

National Trail Raceway

Contact us:

Jay Livingston (Owner/GM) [email protected] 740-928-5706 ext 23

Jason Murray (Director of Operations) [email protected] 740-928-5706 ext 25

Jeb Bolyard (Asst. Manager) [email protected] 740-928-5706 ext 26

Amy Mendez (Office Manager) [email protected] 740-928-5706 ext 21

 

[MM]

I see it mentioned he sold Columbus. I didn’t know that. Does anyone know who the current owners are?

Guy by the name of Jay Livingston who was the GM the last year the track was owned by the previous regime. We've run there the past few years. The team he has put in place, along with Jay himself, are great people. He was dealt a tough hand because his second year of ownership was the Covid year, but he was able to navigate through it.

 

[Rajunz]

so like a lot of tracks he is running in the negative/break even range and he wants the county to give in. He has not paid taxes in 7 years. yes we need tracks but if it is a failing business model, either accept the loss or move on.
not paying your bills is unacceptable

People protest bogus taxes all the time. Just saying. They need to work it out with how much revenues the track brings back to the community.

 

[Gone Dead Train]

Guy by the name of Jay Livingston who was the GM the last year the track was owned by the previous regime. We've run there the past few years. The team he has put in place, along with Jay himself, are great people. He was dealt a tough hand because his second year of ownership was the Covid year, but he was able to navigate through it.

Jay has been around the drag strip business for years, his dad Jim purchased Woodburn drag strip in 1972 and
Jim sold it to his daughter Cherie and son-in-law Joey Severance (pretty good drag racer). Jay also drove the
Top Alcohol Dragster of Steve and Patty Federlin in 2016.

 

[camaro]

If the Track Closings keep up the seasons gonna eventually be similar to the 'Covid' year when most of the races will held at one location, which actually might not be the worst idea. It's kinda like when an entertainer has a Las Vegas type 'Residency', instead of the entertainer touring the country, the country comes see them!

 

[Sherman, Sherm, & Sherm Gun]

It's simple economics. When you have all of these "big" tracks that have ginormous overhead, they are required to hold more and more high income events to pay the bills. That is something your local independent 1/8th with grass pits and no "extras" doesn't have to worry about. Those tracks, barring local problems, should always stay open. And, those are the tracks everyone should be supporting anyways. The last interview I saw with Bret Kupner, he mentioned the USA had something like 430 drag strips. So stop crying about mega tracks going away. Who really gives a $hit???

 

[mikebcurve]

HEARTLAND PARK OWNER INTENDS TO CLOSE TRACK IF HIS APPEAL FAILS AGAINST SHAWNEE COUNTY | Competition Plus

In an article published in the Topeka (Kan.) Capital-Journal on May 22, it appears a strong line in the sand has been drawn by Heartland Motorsports Park owner Chris Payne, who owes Shawnee County more than $2.6 million in property taxes. Payne in the article by Tim Hrenchir says he intends to...

www.competitionplus.com

 

[Jim]

If I read the article correctly, Payne disagrees with the assessed value the county placed on the property.

He has a legal way to appeal that assessment and reduce the assessment, but he has not exercised that ability and has not appealed the valuation.

Instead, he decided to ignore the appeals process and just stop paying taxes.

And now he is threatening to shut down the track rather than pay the same taxes everyone else in the county pays.

Did I read that correctly?

 

[qualified17th]

If I read the article correctly, Payne disagrees with the assessed value the county placed on the property.

He has a legal way to appeal that assessment and reduce the assessment, but he has not exercised that ability and has not appealed the valuation.

Instead, he decided to ignore the appeals process and just stop paying taxes.

And now he is threatening to shut down the track rather than pay the same taxes everyone else in the county pays.

Did I read that correctly?

That's how I read it. Would be nice if somebody with just a basic understanding of how finances work came in and bought the place. Either that, or hurry up and get the new track in Kansas City built before fit hits the shan in Topeka.

 

[Sherman, Sherm, & Sherm Gun]

That's how I read it. Would be nice if somebody with just a basic understanding of how finances work came in and bought the place. Either that, or hurry up and get the new track in Kansas City built before fit hits the shan in Topeka.

Luckily, he isn't financially involved with Flying H Drag Strip.

They are hitting it hard. Flying H Drag Strip