Here is the email I received from Cindy Chavez.
Good afternoon, thank you for contacting me about the 408MX facility at the Santa Clara County Fairgrounds. I have reached out to the Fairgrounds Management Corporation (FMC) to learn as much as I could about this situation.
First some background: The company that operated the 408MX facility had an agreement, not with the County, but with the Fairgrounds Management Corporation (FMC). FMC is the entity that manages the Fairgrounds property for the County. The County Management Agreement requires FMC to adopt a balanced budget and to host the Annual County Fair. The Annual County Fair operates at a loss and requires a subsidy. The Board of Supervisors expects FMC to charge rents that reflect market-level rates for use of Fairgrounds land so that FMC can achieve its obligation of achieving a balanced budget, including fully funding the annual County Fair. This way, the Fair can provide the opportunity for youth agricultural competitions (4H, etc.) without direct tax payer support.
In December 2017, the 408MX operator gave notice to the FMC that he would be vacating the property. He informed the FMC that the 408MX business was losing money and further communicated with the FMC Executive Director on how best to level his track area. Accordingly, the FMC accepted his termination notice and began to look for tenants to fill the space. The FMC is now entertaining multiple offers for use of this land.
In late December, media reports began to surface which charged that the 408MX operation was “kicked off” the Fairgrounds; this surprised FMC, because it was the operator who gave his notice, not the FMC. At the January 9 Board of Supervisors meeting, members of the public expressed concern about the closure of the 408MX facility. Informed that a meeting was scheduled for late that day between the new partnership (former 408MX operator and a new investor) and the Fairgrounds, the Board asked for a future report on those talks.
At that meeting, the FMC offered the new partnership the opportunity to rent the former 408MX space for $2,500 per acre. Other Fairgrounds tenant companies are paying as much as $8,000 per acre. The former 408MX operator had offered to pay $650 per acre, about 8% of market value. FMC’s reduced price offer to the former 408MX operator expired on January 25 without an agreement by the former 408MX operator.
I understand your disappointment with the closure of the 408MX facility at the Fairgrounds.
I also appreciate how much you value motocross as a recreational opportunity. The County does value providing a wide range of recreational opportunities to our residents. Currently, our County Parks facilities offer hiking, horse riding, fishing, rowing, camping, field sports, golf, archery, and even disc golf and model airfields. Among the riding sports, we offer a Motorcycle Park and a velodrome. However, there remain many growing sports that we do not currently accommodate, including curling, cricket, and, now, motocross. I will keep your particular experience with motocross in mind as we seek to expand our offerings.
Again, thank you for reaching out to share your views.
Cindy Chavez
County of Santa Clara Board of Supervisors, District Two
70 West Hedding Street, San Jose, CA 95110
(T) (408) 299-5020 (F) 408 295-8642 ... See more