I received that very same letter @ 9pm last night from Mr Adkisson. That is the letter that Betty Bueche sent him informing him of the situation after we met Thursday at her office. Mrs. Bueche's letter is factually incorrect and misleading and therefore the commisioners chief of staff now has his information incorrect!!!
Here is my letter of rebutal I sent to Mr. adkisson this morning.
Thank you for your time. I contacted Monica Martinez this morning and she is going to get back with me regarding setting up an appointment with you hopefully at the quarter midget track as soon as possible.
In regards to Ms. Bueche's letter informing you of what was going on with the track I have some very serious concerns with some of her statements not being factual and are misleading.
She stated that we have never provided payment or proof of insurance since the lease agreement was established in 1991, this is not true. I know for a fact it was done from 1991-2001 as I was a member and president for many of those years. Also, our club recently provided a back payment that would bring us current.
In reference to two other quarter-midget clubs in San Antonio requesting use of the facilities....
There are only two quarter midget clubs in Texas, the Lone Star Quarter Midget Assoc. here in San Antonio and the River City Quarter Midget Assoc. in Austin which has their own facility. I am not sure who she is referencing to as the other two quarter midget clubs in San Antonio. That track was built and donated by Mr. AJ Ploch for quarter midgets in San Antonio. It is quarter midget families that have fund raised, maintained, and dedicated endless hours of time to keep this facility up without asking for any county resources.
She also referenced that counties are ending lease agreements with quarter midget clubs nationwide due to liability issues. Being a member of a national organization and being informed on the location and existence of each club in the nation I know this statement is not factual. Quarter midgets has safety record that baseball, basketball, and football would envy. There has never been a serious injury of any kind, at any track, anywhere in the country. This is a fact that can be proven, not an assumption. We have contacted our insurance provider for over the last twenty years, and we can go back and provide proof of insurance for the entire length of the lease agreement. They have also stated that they are familiar with our situation as most tracks throughout the country sit on county property and can easily name Bexar County as an also insured and have it on your desk by the end of the day.
In reference to the track being in disrepair, that is absolutely not the case. The track has an asphalt surface that is in excess of 20 years old. Yes, there are cracks, but we have raced on this for many years in it's current condition and there is absolutely not a safety issue. We, the LSQMA, were only approaching the county to make improvements that were generously donated by companies in the area to improve our facility so that we could become one of the premiere racing facilities in the country with the hopes of drawing large, revenue generating, races to San Antonio.
As to Ms. Bueche's recommendation of using our donations and building a new facility, unfortunately these donations only cover the expenses of resurfacing the track. To have to go out and purchase land, install infrastructures such as drainage, electrical, parking, building of fences, and even the expense of having to relocate our scoring tower, concession stands, and other structures would be insurmountable and financially unobtainable.
In closing, Mr. Adkisson, I ask you to keep AJ Ploch's intentions in mind, which were to provide a place for kids whose interests are in motor sports. Not every kid has a passion for baseball, basketball, football, etc. With all of the county built and maintained softball, soccer fields, etc. surely this one acre at Comanche park can remain dedicated to the kids of quarter midgets.
Sincerely,
Shawn Ross
210-789-0182
If anyone has any questions please feel free to contact me at anytime!!!!
I would be happy to give you the whole story, not a one sided agenda driven story.