MARYSVILLE – State legislators are coming to Marysville tonight to hear what Snohomish County residents have to say about the effort to bring a NASCAR track to town.
The Legislative Committee on Economic Development and International Relations will convene from 6 to 8 p.m. today in a public hearing at Marysville-Pilchuck High School.
Representatives from pro-track and anti-track groups will talk about the big-league NASCAR racetrack proposal.
“We’re having this meeting so we can hear from both sides what their concerns are, what the issues are,” said Lt. Gov. Brad Owen, chairman of the committee.International Speedway Corp., Marysville and Snohomish County unveiled the proposal to the committee in Olympia in October. The plan calls for a $200 million contribution in state money, plus another $85 million in transportation improvements. ISC has offered to contribute $50 million, a figure county officials say is still under negotiation.
Critics question those cost estimates, while proponents cite estimated statewide benefits of almost $100 million annually if the track draws NASCAR’s biggest race, the Nextel Cup.
That’s pretty weighty stuff for a low-profile, out-of-session committee that doesn’t take votes and typically does not introduce new bills. Owen’s joint committee has six senators and six representatives.
“It is probably the highest profile, most significant project” the committee has taken on, Owen said.
One committee member, Rep. Dan Roach, R-Bonney Lake, said the committee’s influence is limited compared to committees that meet during the regular session.
“I don’t see it as a power thing when it comes right down to it,” Roach said of the committee.
Owen said he reactivated the 1980s-era committee when he became lieutenant governor so lawmakers could have a more relaxed forum in the legislative off-season to educate themselves about important economic and trade issues.
That’s critical, said Rep. William Eickmeyer, D-Belfair, because the short two- to four-month sessions raise the pressure.
“It’s like being in a beehive,” Eickmeyer said.
Once the session starts in January, the racetrack project will power up, with potential hearings in finance and transportation committees. That’s when tonight’s hearing could make a difference, Eickmeyer said.
“We’ll take what we’ve heard back to our respective committees and respective caucuses in the Senate and the House,” he said.
Roach hopes to be re-appointed to the House Finance Committee, where the track project’s tax incentives could get close scrutiny and might face opposition, he said.
Sen. Joyce Milliken, R-Ephrata, could end up seeing the project again if she continues on the Senate Highways and Transportation Committee. The track would face formidable opposition from Sen. Mary Margaret Haugen, D-Camano Island, the committee’s ranking Democrat.
Milliken said she’s open to supporting the project even though it would not be in Eastern Washington. But she is concerned about NASCAR’s inability to commit beyond one-year contracts.
“We need to know that the taxpayers in the whole state of Washington are going to have long-term benefits,” Milliken said.
Proponents such as Snohomish County Executive Aaron Reardon say tonight’s hearing should help answer such questions.
“We’ve always looked at this as a business deal,” said Reardon’s spokesman, Mark Funk. “If it pencils out for us, we’ll go forward. If it doesn’t, we’re not.”
Reporter Scott Morris: 425-339-3292 or smorris@heraldnet.com.
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