13 April 2005

Governor Sebelius signs bill to improve Heartland Park

As part of her continuing support for local economic development and job creation, Governor Kathleen Sebelius today signed a bill allowing the use of STAR Bonds for improvements at the Heartland Park racetrack in Topeka.

“Heartland Park is an important part of Topeka’s economy, and really the economy of the entire area. We must take advantage of this opportunity to ensure that it will continue to attract top-notch events and create jobs by making improvements to the facilities,” Governor Sebelius said.

HB 2144 allows the use of STAR Bonds for improvements at Heartland Park. The bonds for the motorsports complex will be available to finance a maximum of 50 percent of the redevelopment project costs.

The STAR bond program provides Kansas municipalities the opportunity to issue bonds to finance the development of major commercial entertainment and tourism areas, and use sales tax revenue generated by the development to pay off the bonds.