Month: February 2016

Woodlands owners schedule meeting Saturday

Residents may have a chance to hear about plans for The Woodlands racetrack facility, 9700 Leavenworth Road, at a neighborhood meeting scheduled at 10:30 a.m. Saturday, Feb. 27, at Piper Middle School, 4420 N. 107th St., Kansas City, Kan.

The property owner, Ruffin Woodlands LLC, has submitted an application for a special use permit to operate a gaming facility at The Woodlands.

The 380-acre Woodlands property value was appraised by the Unified Government at $4.5 million in 2015. The racetrack is in Kansas City, Kan., and in the Piper school district.

The horse and dog track operated from 1989 through 2008. The racetrack has been closed since 2008. After a law was passed allowing slot machines at the racetracks, former owners maintained that they needed more revenue from gaming, wanting the same percentage that the state-owned casino operators received from slot machines.

Phil Ruffin, a former Wichita resident, who owns other tracks in Kansas, bought The Woodlands in 2015, and a bill passed in the Kansas Senate that year would approve 2,800 slot machines at the track. Ruffin is a casino owner in Las Vegas, Nevada. He bought the Treasure Island hotel and casino in 2009 in Las Vegas. He also was involved in a joint business venture with the Trump International Tower.

The neighborhood meeting on Saturday, Feb. 27, is part of the Unified Government planning and zoning process. After this meeting, the special use permit would have to go through the UG Planning Commission and the UG full commission for approval.

The Woodlands racetrack's parking lot, as it appeared in 2011. (File photo)
The Woodlands racetrack’s parking lot, as it appeared in 2011. (File photo)

The Woodlands racetrack entrance in 2015. (File photo)
The Woodlands racetrack entrance in 2015. (File photo)

Legendary rocker Eddie Money to play Kansas Speedway pre-race concert

While NASCAR Sprint Cup Series drivers are thinking about taking home the trophy for the GoBowling.com 400 on May 7, race fans will be rocking out to legendary rock icon Eddie Money’s “Take Me Home Tonight” before the race.

Rock icon Money is back on the road with an all-star band. A student of legendary vocal coach Judy Davis and prodigy of manager Bill Graham, Money began his career in the late 1970s belting out hit after hit. The early days of MTV and music videos launched Eddie Money into stardom. An accomplished musician, he sings, he writes, and plays the saxophone, harmonica and piano.

Money has recorded over a dozen albums of his own (selling over 28 million records), and has done numerous projects in television and film. Spring 2001’s David Spade film “Joe Dirt” features Money as Joe Dirt’s rock and roll idol. He also turned up as Mimi’s ex-husband in an episode of “The Drew Carey Show”. He’s currently working on theme songs for Arena Football and Major League Baseball.

“Everything I do, I do it for you”. Eddie Money says it at least once, every show. This straight up rock and roll icon has been making music and delivering it to his fans since the mid 1970s, and wouldn’t have it any other way. His hits include “Two Tickets To Paradise,” “Baby Hold On,” “Walk On Water,” “Think I’m In Love” and “Shakin.”

To see Eddie Money and the action at Kansas Speedway, season tickets and regular tickets are available by calling 866-460-7223 or logging onto www.kansasspeedway.com. Season-ticket holders will have access to the infield for the pre-race concert, driver introductions and access to the Sprint FanWalk.

In May, Kansas Speedway will host the GoBowling.com 400 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race on May 7 and the Toyota Tundra 250 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race on May 6. In October, the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series returns with the Hollywood Casino 400 on Oct. 16. The Kansas Lottery 300 NASCAR XFINITY Series race will take center stage on Oct. 15, while the ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards championship race will run on Oct. 14.