LITTLE ROCK — Plans to build a $150 million motor speedway near Branson have stalled, said Russell Cook of Ridgedale, Mo., the project developer.
“Basically, it’s just on hold right now,” said Cook. “There’s still a good possibility [the track will be built].”
Cook owns the 809-acre speedway site about 2 miles north of the Arkansas line in Taney County, Mo. If it’s built, Cook hopes to attract NASCAR races to the track.
Cook said he should have a better idea about the fate of the proposed track, named the Branson Sports Entertainment Complex, in two months.
He confirmed that his bankruptcy was holding things up and that he may not be the lead developer of the project after his financial reorganization.
Russell and Wanda Cook filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in July. Debts were listed at between $1 million and $10 million. Assets were between $10 million and $50 million.
Chapter 11 protection frees a company from the threat of creditor’s lawsuits while it reorganizes its finances.
According to the initial filing, Cook, who owns a construction company, didn’t believe that he’d have sufficient funds after reorganization to pay unsecured claims.
Cook filed for bankruptcy one day before 550 acres of the speedway site were to be auctioned on the Taney County courthouse steps in Forsyth, Mo. Two banks had claims on the property. Arvest Bank had a $5.3 million judgment against Cook over a loan default, and Empire Bank has a similar judgment for $924,230.
But the bankruptcy filing stopped the auction.
Arvest claims that it has priority because its judgment lien was signed by a judge before Empire’s, wrote Arvest’s attorney, Dan Nelson of Springfield, Mo., in an Aug. 23 court filing. By then, Cook owed Arvest $5.6 million including interest, and the property was worth $3.3 million, wrote Nelson. Arvest filed suit in Taney County in March to clarify that claim, but it was also put on hold because of the bankruptcy filing.
The bankruptcy has yet to be discharged, and Cook is still in possession of the property.
The proposed speedway was a hotly contested issue last year, with several meetings held and neighbors complaining about the noise and traffic it would mean for the area.
In November 2011, the Taney County board of adjustment set a 68-decibel noise restriction on the speedway.
Cook’s group appealed. Nathan Adams, a spokesman for Cook and the racetrack, said “68 decibels” was unclear because there are different ways to measure decibels. In the appeal, Cook noted that cicadas in the neighborhood registered 75 decibels when their chorus was measured the previous summer, so 68 decibels was too restrictive for a racetrack.
Bob Atchley, planning and zoning administrator for Taney County, said the board of adjustment amended its decision to require a reading of decibels, known as dBA, but the board kept the level at 68.
Amy Hunter, a clinical assistant professor of audiology at the University of Arkansas in Fayetteville, said the “A” appendage after “dB” for decibel means it’s a “weighted measurement” or “an average over time.”
Cook has the Taney County Planning Commission’s approval for a land-use permit, but the project is very much up in the air over Cook’s financial issues now, said Atchley.
“I honestly can’t tell you whether this will happen or won’t happen,” he said. “I don’t have a feel for it anymore. I really don’t know what’s going to happen.”
Cook is also facing a civil suit in Taney County Circuit Court over the proposed speedway. Paul Vozar filed suit against Cook in November 2011 claiming his group, the Ozarks Extreme Sports Complex Inc., came up with the idea to build a racetrack and met with Cook in 2009 to discuss buying his land near the Arkansas line.
But Cook used information they provided to pursue the project on his own, Vozar’s suit claims. Vozar’s group is alleging conspiracy and breach of contract, claiming that Cook’s group used their “trade secrets” in their attempt to develop the racetrack. The case is pending.
“He may not know exactly what he’s talking about,” said Cook.
Arkansas, Pages 9 on 12/12/2012