BMX track plans face final showdown

Two groups will go head-to-head on Aug. 1 for the right to help build a bicycle motocross course in Oldsmar.

By MATTIAS KAREN

© St. Petersburg Times, published July 7, 2000

OLDSMAR -- After months of bids and rebids, the Battle of the BMX track should finally see a victor Aug. 1.

Two national bicycle motocross associations competing for the right to build a BMX racetrack in Oldsmar have each been told to submit one final proposal so the City Council can make a decision.

The two associations, the American Bicycle Association and the National Bicycle League, will also have the opportunity to make a presentation and answer any questions at the council's Aug. 1 meeting.

The fight for the right to build the track, which would be at Canal Park, started in April, when the ABA offered the city a grant for the start-up costs of building a BMX track. When the NBL found out about the offer, a bidding war ensued.

Now the two are making the final adjustments to their bids.

"We're going to fine-tune it a little bit," said ABA president Clayton John. But neither he nor NBL executives would disclose what their final proposals will include.

Once the council meeting starts, however, no changes in the bids will be allowed.

"We're not going to sit down and auction this thing out," council member Ed Manny said.

Because of the difference in nature of the two bids, the decision cannot be based solely on money, Mayor Jeff Sandler said.

The ABA, under its latest proposal, would donate the track, including an $11,000 concession stand, wood-chip walkways and $2,000 in road and parking area improvements, to the city in return for the rights to sanction races.

The NBL's latest bid says the association would build the track and lease the land from the city. It is also offering a computer and printer and track maintenance equipment.

"In terms of bottom line, it's going to be very, very difficult to evaluate," Sandler said.

City officials estimate the value of both bids are in the $20,000-to-$40,000 range. The original bids were worth an estimated $5,000 to $10,000.

Even though the competition has increased the value of the packages dramatically, Sandler said the city will be happy to put the matter to an end.

"We're really getting kind of tired of dealing with it," he said.

Mattias Karen can be reached at (727) 445-4243 or at northpin@sptimes.com.

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