By COLE REIF
Great Bend Post
There is not much City of Great Bend officials can say regarding the cancellation of the race season at the SRCA Dragstrip and future repairs needed to the track. The SRCA Board canceled the race season this past spring because they deemed the track unsafe and in need of substantial repairs.
RELATED STORY: Linger problems, responsibility questions
After a $1.6 million reconstruction of the dragstrip in May 2021, there have been problems with the surface meeting required standards. Figuring out who is responsible for the repairs, Great Bend City Administrator Brandon Anderson, in an interview on 1590 KVGB & 95.5 FM earlier this month, said the case is in the middle of a legal arbitration.
"We know the case won't start getting arbitrated until June 2024," said Anderson. "The city doesn't have the kind of funds that it would take to rebuild the track right now. We're kind of in a holding pattern. We're in a waiting pattern."
After completion of the dragstrip reconstruction in 2021, the SRCA volunteers told the city there were high spots on the track that needed to be polished. The polishing caused the top sealing part of the concrete to come off, resulting in exposed holes.
Anderson said when the legal matter gets resolved, the city if hopeful a track rebuild will create a product that makes everyone proud.
"I hope everyone understands that if we were flush with money we would have none of these problems," said Anderson. "The way we get flush with money is by involving taxes, and that's always a bad word. Ultimately, we're accountable to the citizens of this community that pay those taxes. We try to do a responsible job of spending the tax money they allot us."
The SRCA Board and volunteers operate the track, but the facility is owned by the city.