CLARKSVILLE, TN (CLARKSVILLE NOW) – The City’s plan to buy the Clarksville Speedway picked up speed Thursday night as the City Council was asked to approve negotiations for a $7 million deal.

And the deal took on new importance as the council learned that the planned widening of Needmore Road is going to be much more expensive if the Speedway remains there.

Clarksville Speedway owner William Scogin is offering to sell the 83-acre Speedway property, with a provision that he be allowed two years to close out his business and complete existing contracts for events such as the Montgomery County Fair and the circus.

Creating Hazelwood Recreation Complex

Street Department Director David Smith offered the council a review of the situation. In 2019, the City Council created a Capital Project for the purchase of land for a new recreation center. The City included it in their FY23 budget, and the amount available stands at $8.5 million.

The City is now proposing a new “Hazelwood Recreation Complex” that could include these features:

• Permanent indoor pool, to replace the seasonal domed pool that was destroyed by a storm last spring.
• New Blueway canoe/kayak/raft access point to replace or add to the overcrowded Billy Dunlop Park access point.
• Recreation center with a gym, meeting space and fitness center.
• Multi-use fields.
• Accessible playground.
• Walking trail loop.

There are no existing recreation centers north of 101st Airborne Division Parkway.

Sale price raises questions

The $7 million sale price became a point of contention with some council members. The property is currently appraised at only $3.66 million, but that’s under its current lower-value agricultural zoning.

“I’m concerned when you look at the numbers whether we’re doing our due diligence,” said Councilwoman Karen Reynolds, pointing out that the City normally buys at only appraised value.

If Scogin decided instead to sell to a private developer, the land would be rezoned to match surrounding residential and commercial property. A large tract next to the Speedway recently sold for $140,503 an acre, according to Smith. At that comparable price, a rezoned Speedway would be worth about $11.66 million, which is $4.66 million more than what Scogin is asking.

“It’s a much better deal for us,” Smith said.

Scogin approached the council and agreed that the City is getting a good deal. “Sounds to me like I left money on the table,” he said jokingly.

On the zoning, he said the land is really commercial property. “I could have rezoned this because I’m paying commercial taxes now, I just choose not to do that. So technically, you are buying a commercial piece of property at an agricultural price.”

Needmore Road widening

Buying the Speedway would serve another purpose for the City that the council learned about Thursday: It would greatly reduce the cost of widening Needmore Road.

The City plans to widen Needmore to five lanes with sidewalks on both sides. But there is barely room between the Speedway and the houses on the other side to do that.

If the Speedway remains where it is, the City will have to build a $3 million, 700-foot-long, 20-foot tall barrier wall next to the existing shipping containers that create an embankment for the racetrack, Smith said.

The City will also have to push the right-of-way to the foundations of the homes on the east side of the road, for construction and road grading.

So, according to Smith’s presentation, Option 1, to widen Needmore with the Speedway there, will cost an additional $3.9 million, resulting in 1 acre of right-of-way. Option 2, to purchase the Speedway, will cost $7.18 million, resulting in 83.4 acres on which to build a future Hazelwood Recreation Center.

“It’s a win-win for the City, for parks, for everyone,” Smith said.

If the City doesn’t buy the Speedway but spends almost $4 million to build the retaining wall for the racetrack, and then the Speedway is sold years later, the retaining wall would probably need to be torn down, wasting millions in taxpayer money, Smith said.

One complication that City Attorney Lance Baker pointed out: Normally, the City is only allowed to buy land at the appraised value. To pay more than that – since the land is still under AG zoning – the City has to have a finding of public necessity (in this case for widening Needmore) and approve it by a two-thirds council vote.

Fairs and circuses

Closing the Speedway solves some growing problems for both the City and Scogin, as encroaching homes bring more noise complaints about the racetrack. “I’m backed up in a corner with all the houses going around me,” Scogin said. “I know down the road at some point it’s not going to be feasible to do this.”

Scogin said biggest concern is that the things the Speedway offers outside of racing continue, and selling the land to the City could allow that. “I didn’t want to sell if for houses; I want to help the City out,” Scogin said.

“We need a place to do the fairs and circuses, the stuff for people to come and do. We still need a place to do all that. We’re just not going to have the racing,” he said. “I’ve got a Christmas light show, I’ve got $1 million worth of lights. I’ve gotta do something with that.”

He said he hopes that the land will be used to continue those events.

In his banter with council members, Scogin said he has mixed feelings about the sale. “It’s a good day when I get that check, but a bad day when I’ve got to leave.”