INDIANAPOLIS — An entertainment district is the most likely mixed-use development for Penske Entertainment to pursue at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, according to IndyCar president Doug Boles, and that vision will start to be shared with the public over the next two years.
The famous race track built in the spring of 1909 sits on a roughly 1,000-acre campus, making it well-positioned to capitalize on the mixed-use trend that has become popular with sports venues across the U.S. This weekend’s Indy 500 is the 110th running of the race, highlighting the historic age of the venue.
Boles told SBJ in March that Penske Entertainment execs were exploring opportunities with mixed use, but he gave more details in an interview Friday after IndyCar announced a title sponsor extension with NTT.
Boles confirmed that an entertainment district is the sort of project IMS has in mind, calling it “the most logical thing for the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.”
“We’ve got the hotel that the town has been trying to get back under construction since it stopped in 2019, and the new restoration center for the museum that’s being constructed just immediately south of the property, of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway property, so there’s a couple of anchors that need to get done there,” Boles said. “And then we’ll think about how do we really step in and utilize our property better.”
PENSKE’S PICTURE: Boles noted that when Roger Penske first bought the track and series in 2019, he was already thinking about how to better utilize the enormous real estate at IMS. However, the topic was promptly put on the back burner after the pandemic in 2020. IMS execs are just now getting around to planning a mixed-use concept.
While Penske and Boles have said they want to develop the land, this is believed to be the first time Boles has used the language “entertainment district” publicly. It’s not known how much Penske is willing to spend on the project or when Penske Entertainment execs envision such a project breaking ground.
“We have started talking a little more recently: ‘What do we think about the property, especially the property immediately to the south of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway?’ Boles said of an area of the track that’s largely used for parking.
”So, I do think over the course of the next 24 months, you’ll probably see something where we say, ‘OK, here’s what we’d like to do.’ Working with the city, working with the town, working with partners with NTT to say, ‘What’s the best use for that beyond just a racetrack?’”
