ORVILLE MOE - UPDATE
But the court-ordered direction of the troubled and storied motorsports facility is clear – there will be new ownership, new management and new plans.
The facility’s plight now is in state court hands as it goes through the legal steps toward building financial and organizational credibility in wake of Orville Moe’s dismissal as general manager.
Moe, the legendary force behind SRP for three decades, was fired June 1 as GM of the racing complex by a judge who concluded the 69-year-old millionaire had disobeyed a court-appointed receiver overseeing financial operations.
The legal fight and angry words continue over the future of Spokane Raceway Park.
But the court-ordered direction of the troubled and storied motorsports facility is clear – there will be new ownership, new management and new plans.
The facility’s plight now is in state court hands as it goes through the legal steps toward building financial and organizational credibility in wake of Orville Moe’s dismissal as general manager.
Moe, the legendary force behind SRP for three decades, was fired June 1 as GM of the racing complex by a judge who concluded the 69-year-old millionaire had disobeyed a court-appointed receiver overseeing financial operations.
But Moe vows to go down swinging in his bid to regain control of the park.
“We’re in the middle of a war,” said Moe, who claims the track battle is a “family feud and a hostile takeover attempt” that has divided family and friends.
“We haven’t done anything wrong, and we have a majority of the owners behind us,” Moe said. “We’re working on getting back in control of everything.”
Moe had given “misleading and false information” to 500 limited partners whose money helped build the facility, court-appointed receiver Barry Davidson reported. The investors, in a lawsuit that spurred Davidson’s appointment to oversee the track’s financial books, insisted they saw no return on more than $2 million in stock they bought from Moe in the 1970s. Angry investors sued Moe, alleging he “converted partnership assets” from the racetrack operation for his own profit.
Moe was the president of Spokane Raceway Park Inc., the general partner in the business venture.
The judge also said Moe refused to recognize or cooperate with the powers vested in the receiver who took charge of SRP’s entire financial operations.
Moe since has been banned from the premises by a court order.
Furthermore, a U.S. Bankruptcy Court in the Eastern District of Washington issued a ruling this week that found the park and Moe in contempt of court and imposed remedial sanctions.
The court, with its latest action, is enabling Davidson’s team to move forward in the ultimate compensation of shareholders, liquidation of assets and the selling of the racing complex. Davidson was appointed more than a year ago to being the process of finding a real estate firm to appraise the square-mile racing complex in Airway Heights and market it for potential sale.
Davidson has hired Kenney Wilson, Inc., to be the exclusive selling agent.
The latest ruling also authorized the continuance of three companion lawsuits tied to the embattled park.
The park remained open this year under interim GM Jim Tice. The 600-acre facility, which is in need of remodeling, supports a quarter-mile drag strip, 2.5-mile road course and half-mile asphalt oval.
Moe’s nephew Troy, who helped lead the push to oust Moe, is heading a group of investors interested in buying the track. Moe is encouraged by the court’s latest actions.
“It’s moving forward,” he said. “It’s a process and it’s being done properly. We just want the process to go forward in the state courts.”
If they’re successful in buying the park, Troy Moe’s group plans to retain it as a motorsports facility. He said the complex needs drastic improvements.
The Kalispel Tribe, which owns 40 acres of the park and operates a casino, also is thought to be interested in buying the park. It is unclear if the tribe intends to keep it a racing facility.
Orville Moe said he has a group also interested in reclaiming the park. He isn’t about to give up the legal fight.
“We got some people who are working on it,” he said. “We’ve been on the defense for three years and we can’t do that.
“We got some actions for all of them,” he added. “They try to run you out of money and beat you down. You find out who your real friends are.”
