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TOOELE — The Tooele County Commission on Tuesday agreed to sell Utah Motorsports Campus to Mitime Utah Investment, LLC, for about $18.5 million, according to county documents.
The company has been managing the facility, which used to be known as Miller Motorsports Park, for the past few years.
"Mitime has been a good partner during the protracted legal challenges of the past three years, managing the facility and keeping it open as a public venue to many of the same stakeholders that Larry H. Miller started with," said County Commissioner Shawn Milne.
"We're pleased to keep his dream alive by ensuring the long-term success of the facility and its seasonal operations amidst our community."
Miller Motorsports Park opened in 2006 and was touted as one of the finest racing facilities in the world. However, it was also a huge financial drain on the Larry H. Miller Group of Companies, losing millions of dollars since its start.
In 2015, the Larry H. Miller Group of Companies announced it would cease operations of the park.
Since the group cut ties with the racetrack, the county faced difficulties in selling it, including a lawsuit filed in September 2015 against the county by a Wyoming-based company that wished to buy the campus but lost the bid to Mitime Investment.
In December 2015, a 3rd District Court decision halted the sale of the racetrack with the belief that the property needed a new appraisal, Tooele County Commission officials said at the time.
In 2016 and 2017, Mitime Investment signed year-long agreements to continue operating the park while the county rebooted the sale process.
On Thursday, Milne said the sale agreement was a "big win" for the county and officials are "excited about the future of world-class racing remaining in Tooele County."
This September, Travis Pastrana and Nitro Circus came to the racetrack.
Related story:
End of an era: After 50 years of racing, Rocky Mountain Raceways grabs the checkered flag
Rocky Mountain Raceways has been a fixture in Utah's auto racing scene for 50 years. It will close after one last day of racing on Sept. 29, leaving a hole in Utah's racing community."This track is exactly what you would imagine it would be from the mind of Travis Pastrana," said Tanner Foust, global rallycross champion and a driver in Nitro Rallycross.
"Big banked turns and massive jumps create a spectacle that from a fan's standpoint has to be stunning, but from a driver standpoint, it's eye-opening. Honestly, driving this course feels like you are in a video game. It is such a cool feeling."
The closing date for the purchase of the racetrack is set for no later than Jan. 1, 2019, according to county documents.
