Sale sparks fears the end of racing at Wisconsin State Fair Park is near

A 13-year-old section of bleachers at Wisconsin State Fair Park have been put on the auction block, leading some to fear it's the beginning of the end for the Milwaukee Mile, the oldest operating motor speedway on the planet.The ad for Section YY, which sits on turn 4 of the track and seats about 1,100 people, appeared on GovDeals.com earlier this month. The auction lasts until March 13, and the highest bidder is responsible for removing the seats and the structure anytime between April 22 and May 13.The reason for the sale? Officials want to make better use of the land -- attendance at the state fair has increased to more than one million visitors in each of the last five years -- and don't want to foot the bill for the bleachers' removal."If we had to tear them down it would costs us, I estimated $20,000, so we'll take a dollar if someone will come and take them away and save us that kind of money," said Wisconsin State Fair Park CEO Rick Frenette.He said the seats were built with the expectation that Indy and NASCAR races would become bigger."That didn't happen," he said.And that's got some racing fans concerned that the sale could be another step to getting rid of the speedway altogether. A website at SaveTheMile.org points out that Section ZZ has already been sold.There are no major league auto racing events at the Milwaukee Mile on the 2016 schedule.

A 13-year-old section of bleachers at Wisconsin State Fair Park have been put on the auction block, leading some to fear it's the beginning of the end for the Milwaukee Mile, the oldest operating motor speedway on the planet.

The ad for Section YY, which sits on turn 4 of the track and seats about 1,100 people, appeared on GovDeals.com earlier this month. The auction lasts until March 13, and the highest bidder is responsible for removing the seats and the structure anytime between April 22 and May 13.



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The reason for the sale? Officials want to make better use of the land -- attendance at the state fair has increased to more than one million visitors in each of the last five years -- and don't want to foot the bill for the bleachers' removal.



"If we had to tear them down it would costs us, I estimated $20,000, so we'll take a dollar if someone will come and take them away and save us that kind of money," said Wisconsin State Fair Park CEO Rick Frenette.



He said the seats were built with the expectation that Indy and NASCAR races would become bigger.



"That didn't happen," he said.



And that's got some racing fans concerned that the sale could be another step to getting rid of the speedway altogether. A website at SaveTheMile.org points out that Section ZZ has already been sold.



There are no major league auto racing events at the Milwaukee Mile on the 2016 schedule.

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