By Jessica Mathews / news@whmi.com


Additional time has been granted to work out a purchase agreement for the sale of property in the City of Howell where a large motorsport and racing track project is being proposed.

City Council met virtually Monday night and again discussed the potential sale of the Highland-Howell property that totals 216-acres along I-96 between Lucy Road and Michigan Avenue. Council previously authorized staff to enter into a purchase agreement with JD Racing with a July 27th deadline. Indoor and outdoor go-karts were described as a small aspect of the overall multi-use development that would be predominantly surrounded by high-end garage condos and a full size track for club members and availability for special events.

At the meeting, City Manager Paul DeBuff informed Council they would not be making the deadline and proposed to move in a different direction with the agreement. He said the parties met to discuss possibly entering into something like a lease-to-purchase agreement, which would give the developer the right to purchase the property after making a substantial investment in it. DeBuff said that would allow the city to protect its interest to the property and ensure the project comes to fruition. He explained the land would be leased from the City until benchmarks are achieved, which would trigger the eventual purchase of the property. DeBuff said there are also benefits for JD Racing as it could begin the development with less initial capital out of pocket and deal points would be part of a negotiation process.

Mark and Jordan Dick attended the meeting and told Council they were ready to submit a purchase agreement July 3rd. Mark stated they had an extensive meeting with all parties and were ready to sign and thinks everyone was comfortable for the most part but then DeBuff brought a unique concept to the table – which they are willing to explore and discuss. He said it was just very recently brought to the table and they want to do what’s right for everybody and are willing to discuss it but also have a purchase agreement on the table they were ready to sign. During the meeting, questions were raised about the types of cars, alcohol, traffic management and the overall proposal. The pair noted they intend to work with professional engineering firms for traffic to come up with the best decision, adding their priority is safety and minimizing risk. Mark stressed the demographic is completely different than what people might think. He said people typically spend hundreds of thousands of dollars on the garage condos and then have hundreds of hundreds of thousands of dollars’ worth of cars stored – adding it’s a very professional and family oriented environment. Mark stated he didn’t want anyone to get the wrong perception that this will be a bunch of loud young people racing for pink slips but the complete opposite.

Council approved removing the deadline so negotiations can continue on a lease purchase agreement or different mechanism to make sure the property is developed as planned. Updates will be provided to Council, with a final draft to be brought forward. The motion passed unanimously, although Mayor Pro-Tem Steve Manor indicated he was very reluctant. He questioned the market and preferred proceeding with a housing project that was earlier proposed for the site.