TOPEKA (KSNT) - Heartland Motorsports Park has a new owner this week following an auction and tax disputes.
Shawnee County Register of Deeds Director Becky Nioce told 27 News the park is now in the hands of Topeka 77, LLC. She said the transfer occurred around 2 p.m. on Sept. 30. She did not disclose the price the park sold for at auction, saying it was not public information.
Former owner of the park, Chris Payne with Shelby Development, LLC, told 27 News he intends to give out more information on the transfer of ownership in the near future. Earlier in the year, he said he intended to use the auction to pay off his tax debt to Shawnee County which was more than $3.2 million. The taxes owed to the county were growing daily for the 28 parcels of land Payne owned.
Heartland Motorsports Park, and all surrounding parcels owned by Payne, sold at auction to a then-mysterious buyer on July 24. The park was up for grabs in the online-only auction in the summer and attracted bids in the millions of dollars before closing suddenly for a pre-auction offer.
In a July 26 interview with 27 News, Payne said none of the bidders for the park were interested in keeping it as a race track. He hoped to "pass the torch" to an organization that would keep the track as is.
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