NASCAR's track of future rising above rural Kansas (cont'd)

"I hope that you can use this as a model of what you can do with a NASCAR race track in your area. It shows that you can take a community and build around the excitement of this race track and create jobs and businesses. You look at the Seattle track and the reception they got there and how they were saying they didn't want it. If they came here and saw what has happened in this community and this area, I think they'd re-think that. It's pretty extraordinary what they've been able to pull off here."

Before the speedway, this was a sleepy, rural community 15 miles outside of downtown Kansas City, and a county known for little besides pheasant hunting. Track president Jeff Boerger, who formerly worked in economic development for the Kansas City Development Council, was the man charged with buying the 169 individual properties that now comprise the speedway property.

It wasn't an altogether painless process -- 20 percent of those parcels were obtained by eminent domain -- and taxpayers in Wyandotte County picked up a large chunk of the bill. Kansas Speedway has sold out every Cup event, but the fact that spectators have to buy a season ticket package that also includes Busch, Craftsman Truck and Indy Racing League events rankles some fans.

But it's hard to argue with the results. "The growth in this area has been phenomenal," Kurt Busch said. "I was here [Thursday] early and got to see some of the businesses and shops that have popped up out of the farmland, and it's been dramatic the last seven years since this race track was built. This was the only thing out here.

"I remember out on Parallel Parkway, I stopped at a gas station before our first test session and I asked them, 'Are you excited about this?' They looked at me like, what are you talking about? Now, that's probably the most thriving gas station in the area because of all the things that have been built up around it."

The next thing may be the sleek casino and hotel, a project proposed by the speedway in conjunction with the Cordish Co., a Baltimore development firm. The Kansas legislature recently passed a law allowing for the construction of four destination casinos, but only one in each region of the state. One of those will be in Wyandotte County, and the speedway bid is one of several that have been submitted. The county will recommend one site to the state in December. Boerger believes his facility is the natural choice.

"Not only does it interact with Kansas Speedway, it adds more success to this development," he said. "You want to continue to add things to your development, continue to grow. We've proven to Wyandotte County, everything we said we'd do, we've delivered on it. We want to continue that success, continue that growth, continue that wealth for Wyandotte County. The best pick, there should be no other logical reason than right here at Kansas Speedway."

Truthfully, Kansas Speedway doesn't need a casino to stand out among so many other facilities on the Cup tour. From the beginning, they did things the right way here. Nearby intersecting interstates ease the traffic flow. There's a wide, green plaza in the infield for exhibits. The fence along the garage area is broken at waist level by a rectangular opening, designed so fans can poke pens and paper through for drivers to sign. There's so much to do within walking distance. A movie theatre and a Chipotle have to beat spending all night in a tent.

But the casino resort will likely become a reality, adding a 300-room, five-star hotel to a corner of the state that once few people wished to visit. It will stand as another castle built in Kansas' own fantastical land of Oz.

The opinions expressed are solely of the writer.