Austin MotoGP 2013 in jeopardy?

The Austin American-Statesman filed a plea in state District Court in Travis County on Wednesday seeking access to information that has been sealed in a lawsuit by the former head of the Formula One racetrack project against several track investors and officers.



"We want to find out what it is about this lawsuit that has to be kept secret," said Jim George, who filed the action and represents the Statesman. "I've been doing this 20 years, and I've never seen anything like this. Secrecy from the public is never in the best interest of anybody."



A hearing on the Statesman's request is set for May 29.



Statesman Managing Editor John Bridges said keeping all proceedings open is a matter of public interest.



"Court records are open for a reason," he said. "The public's right to access the records in this case is particularly important because the F1 project relies so heavily upon taxpayer money. Taxpayers deserve to know what's happening in a civil suit that could affect that public investment."



However, two district judges — Rhonda Hurley and Scott Jenkins — have already held hearings in which the temporary sealing of information was approved.



A final hearing on the merits of the issue is scheduled before District Judge Lora Livingston on June 11.



George said the newspaper did not receive a notice of the March 26 hearing before Hurley where court proceedings were sealed the first time. At the hearing before Jenkins in which he approved a temporary agreement to keep some information from public disclosure, the Statesman registered its objection. Jenkins said there was still time to file an objection.



Tavo Hellmund, once the face of the Formula One project, and his company, Full Throttle Productions, filed a lawsuit in March against Circuit of the Americas Chairman Bobby Epstein, investors and officers involved in the $300 million Formula One project under construction southeast of Austin. Hellmund said in the suit that terms for his $18 million buyout were not fulfilled and that he was scheduled to make $500,000 a year for 10 years as chairman of the F1 U.S. Grand Prix.



Circuit of the Americas attorneys want court proceedings sealed because they say they would have to divulge business practices that are confidential, said Julie Loignon, a spokeswoman for Circuit of the Americas.



Hellmund's attorneys want all court proceedings open.



"Hundreds of millions of public dollars could be spent on Austin's Formula One project, so this matter is too important to Texas taxpayers to be kept secret," said Eric Wetzel, vice president of Shipley & Associates and a spokesman for Hellmund's legal team.



Public money has already been committed to help put on Formula One racing. Travis County has agreed to pay for at least part of two key road expansions near the track.



Circuit of the Americas could also receive $250 million over 10 years from the state's Major Events Trust Fund if it can prove that it brings in that much in sales taxes.




Click to expand...

Mick D said:

This thread is like watching paint dry, only way less exciting. Your updates give me indigestion.

Click to expand...

"The facts upon which this office has been asked to opine are disputed, and contested issues of fact are not amenable to the opinion process," Abbott wrote.



Texas Land Commissioner Jerry Patterson, who filed the request for an opinion, said that regardless of the outcome, "We've got more eyes on the trust fund. ... This is not about Formula One. This is about the trust fund."



Officials at Circuit of the Americas, the $300 million track being constructed southeast of Austin, declined to comment on Abbott's opinion.



Patterson said his office has filed open records requests to see whether Combs and her staff complied with state statutes and rules governing the trust, as her office maintains.



"We believe that we've followed the law, and there's nothing in the opinion to say otherwise," said Lauren Willis, a spokeswoman for the comptroller's office.



Combs and Patterson, both Republicans, are eyeing a run for the lieutenant governor's office in 2014, so their dispute carries strong political overtones.



Patterson contends Combs violated rules for the trust fund because she did not determine the additional tax revenue the race would generate. He also has said a request to tap the economic development fund was supposed to come initially from a local government entity or nonprofit, not the comptroller's office.



"This ought to come from the community, not the comptroller," Patterson said. "When Austin was surprised they were selected, they obviously were not involved in the process."



In a 2010 letter to F1 boss Bernie Ecclestone, Combs appeared to promise a $25 million payment to F1 by July 31 of last year.



"We maintain that the letter merely indicated broad support," Willis said.



The money was not paid to Ecclestone by that date, and a contract local promoter Tavo Hellmund had for the race was voided. Construction on the Circuit of the Americas was halted not long after, and Austin's inaugural Grand Prix, the first F1 race in the United States since 2007, was barely saved by a December payment to F1 from the circuit and its investors.



Combs said no money would be paid from the state until after the race, which is scheduled for Nov. 18.



Patterson said: "We have one person who is moving around a lot of money. There needs to be some check and balances on how this is administered."

Click to expand...

- NEW Circuit of the Americas traffic plan, proposed shuttle sites, on-site parking, bike & pedestrian info: http://www.kvue.com/news/Circuit-of-the-Americas-releases-F1-Traffic-Management-Plan-153366805.html



- Estimated shuttle transport time from downtown #Austin: 80 mins. Private car time to exit the Circuit of the Americas: 2-3 hours

- CoTA bike parking at Moore's Crossing bridge is famous for being haunted. Woo!

- Cyclists will not be able to ride onto COTA property. There will be a park & lock at the haunted bridge ...ahem, Moore Bridge Road.

- According to this document, VIP attendees include #F1, COTA, & local officials, media, participants, owners, sponsors, & other stakeholders.

- Hm, looks as though car pooling in addition to the provided shuttles will be advised.

- Here come the #Austin #F1 schedule of events (under development): Thursday, November 15  Formula One practice, 10am to 4pm (She didn't get that wrong. The document says that.)

- Friday, November 16  Spectator shuttles, 8am to 7pm (start/end times under development)  Formula One Practice Sessions 1 and 2 10am to 4pm

- Saturday, November 17  Spectator shuttles, 8am - 7pm (start/end times under development)  F1 Practice Session 3 & Qualifying, 10am - 4pm

- Sunday, November 18 - United States Formula One Grand Prix, 1:00 pm  Spectator shuttles, 7am-8pm (start/end times under development)

- It's estimated times for now, for the people parking their own cars on the lot. Roads around the circuit are tiny

- "Parking permits will be issued along with the tickets no later than four weeks prior to event."

- Note this, travelers >>> Cash Parking Lots (day of the event) will not be available on-site at COTA.

- Taxis, hotel complimentary shuttle service to & from COTA will not be allowed in.

- Hotel shuttles will be allowed to shuttle to/from the COTA park-n-ride lots.

- Actively seeking bus/motorcoach providers who have low-emission buses  Bicycle access route, from downtown Austin under development

- Parking permits for RVs could be available early in June.

- The plan includes suggestions to help with traffic in the future. For example, a light-rail to airport & CoTA

Click to expand...

JohnnyKnockdown said:

Texas. Lots of great info and pics here. Thank you.

You may already have stated this and I missed it.

Are you affiliated with this project in some way? You have an awful lot of info and updated pics about what is happening

Click to expand...

COTA says that Hellmund committed himself and his companies to settling any disputes by arbitration. It quotes a partnership agreement as saying “any controversy, claim or dispute between or among the Company and any Member or among Members arising out of or relating to this Company Agreement or any other matters pertaining to the Company, shall be settled by binding arbitration.”



To that end, COTA says that it has “today filed with the District Court of Travis County, Texas, an amended plea in abatement and motion to compel arbitration.”



COTA has also agreed to release to the public information related to the dispute that had previously been sealed by the court.



Circuit Chairman Robert Epstein said: “Our intent from the beginning has been to resolve this matter efficiently through the agreed-upon binding arbitration process, and we feel that unsealing the court records moves us closer to this goal.”



COTA attorney Michael Whellan added: “We believe the facts made public through today’s filing strongly support our position that Mr. Hellmund’s claims and accusations—and his misrepresentations to Circuit representatives and the public about his ability to assign Formula 1 race contracts—only serve to undermine his case.



“We believe the tactics Mr. Hellmund and his legal team have employed to date are meant to purposely generate negative public sentiment about Circuit of The Americas in hopes of extracting a large settlement. Unfortunately, we do not expect these tactics to end anytime soon. Nonetheless, we are prepared to arbitrate this dispute as the parties have agreed to do in writing.”

Click to expand...

The legal moves Thursday came in advance of a June hearing to decide whether Hellmund's suit against his former partners should be settled by arbitration or by a trial. Hellmund's side wants the matter to be settled in the courts, while race investors Red McCombs, Bobby Epstein and other defendants prefer arbitration.



...



One day shy of the second anniversary of the announcement of Austin's first F1 race, the warring parties went before District Judge Lora Livingston to decide whether track investor Red McCombs would have to be present for the June 11-12 hearing. Livingston ruled that McCombs would have to be available to testify, if needed, during the second day of the hearing.



Two case documents obtained Thursday by the American-Statesman raise questions about the commitment to the project of McCombs, an 84-year-old San Antonio billionaire.



At one point McCombs had a 57 percent interest in the project's parent company, Accelerator Holdings, and was charged with raising $190 million in funding, according to the company agreement.



But in a motion to quash a trial subpoena for McCombs, his lawyers argued that McCombs was not an officer or director of McCombs Motor Sports LLC and that even though McCombs signed an $18 million settlement agreement with Hellmund, he was not actively involved in the details of the negotiations.



"These are two major documents that are foundations to this project," said Hellmund's lawyer Austin Tighe. "We have him (McCombs) being the financial face in press conferences and roof toppings, but based on what was presented today, he has very little, if any, involvement in this project."



The documents released Thursday show that at one point the parties reached a settlement agreement in which Hellmund would have received $6 million in cash and a $12 million promissory note for his share in the company and for assigning the 10-year contracts for Formula One Grand Prix and a MotoGP race to the circuit. That agreement fell apart, prompting Hellmund's suit. In his suit Hellmund claims that his share of the company is 20 percent, about the same as that of McCombs.



...

Click to expand...

Geonerd said:

"18 Big Ones and I'll go away."

Click to expand...