ANDERSON – Over the course of the next year, Anderson Speedway will invest a minimum of $500,000 for upgrades of the facility that first opened in 1947.
The speedway kicked off its 71st year of racing last Saturday and will host the 70th running of the Pay Less/UAW-GM Little 500 sprint car race May 26.
The Anderson Revolving Loan Fund board Wednesday approved a $100,000 loan to Action Entertainment, owner of Anderson Speedway, through Star Bank.
Trent Downing with Star Bank said the money will be used for improvements to the track facility. He said the speedway will invest $50,000 and has signed a 10-year lease/purchase agreement for new seating.
The approved $100,000 loan is for 10 years at 75 percent of the prime lending lease, as allowed by Revolving Loan Fund policy.
“The speedway had a good year in 2017,” Downing said.
Rick Dawson, president of the speedway, said the seats will be replaced one section at a time and should be completed in time for the opening of the 2019 season.
“We’re going to replace the wooden seats and walkways with aluminum,” he said. “We're repairing and replacing the damaged bleachers. The infrastructure is good.”
Dawson said the upgrades include LED lighting for the entire facility.
The aluminum replacement seats are being obtained from race tracks in North Carolina and Michigan. The work will take at least a year, he said.
According to Dawson, the main grandstands came from the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in the early 1960s after a fire destroyed the bleachers at Anderson Speedway.
“This is exciting for the track and the city of Anderson,” Dawson said. “It will make the facility more accessible to everybody. People I’ve talked with said when new seats are installed attendance increases by 200 or 300 people on a normal night."