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Warren County committee questions air-race deal that could require up to $1.2 million
Summary
County staff presented options for hosting an international air-racing event; the promoter outlined staged payments and a possible 50/50 revenue share, but supervisors pressed for clearer dates, logistics and a narrower county commitment before any agreement.
Warren County’s occupancy-tax committee spent much of its July 21 meeting reviewing a term sheet for a proposed international air-racing event, with staff and the event owner outlining multiple payment scenarios and supervisors warning the county needs more detail before committing money.
Heather (county tourism staff) told supervisors the proposal includes four payment structures: a nonrefundable letter-of-intent of $45,000, staged payments tied to milestones and cumulative ticket-sales triggers, and a maximum upfront county contribution of roughly $1.2 million. She said staff have been negotiating to reduce the county’s exposure and to convert parts of the agreement into revenue-share arrangements where possible.
Kevin Hajros, who has worked on airport facilities for the county, said staff have not yet compiled a complete list of host obligations and that county offices will continue negotiating specifics with the promoter. An ARX representative who identified the organization as the event’s governing owner, not the promoter, told the committee the organization typically receives an upfront payment in larger markets but is proposing alternate revenue-sharing models for smaller communities. The representative said the group could be willing to limit spectator access via advance ticket sales and discussed a potential 50/50 profit-share arrangement with the county.
Supervisors pressed for logistics, saying they need clarity on dates and the scope of county responsibilities. “We still don’t have a full knowledge of everything on it yet,” Kevin Hajros told the committee. Members repeatedly asked whether the event’s schedule could be moved away from peak summer weekends, how much of the on-site staffing and infrastructure would fall to the county, and what the airport’s host requirements would include.
Heather said staff will bring a more detailed budget and a negotiated host agreement to the next committee meeting: “We will pull that together and bring through all of our additional negotiations and what’s exactly needed from a budget perspective at the next committee meeting.” The committee did not vote on any commitment; staff described the presentation as discussion only and asked for direction to continue negotiations.
