Did Bruton rake taxpayers over the coals?

Basically Bruton Smith blackmailed City Council to get what he wanted

Last August, Concord leaders learned that Bruton Smith, billionaire owner of Lowe's Motor Speedway, wanted incentives for a proposed drag strip and track expansion.

Three months passed, and Smith threatened to move his racing complex, before Concord and Cabarrus County worked out a deal he would accept.

The $80 million package included $20 million that local leaders hope the state will pay. If the state doesn't pay — and there has been no indication that it will — local taxpayers will be on the hook for the entire amount.

Smith agreed to stay in Concord, spend $200 million to expand the track and build a $60 million drag strip.

Under the N.C. Public Records Act, the Observer obtained more than 1,100 pages of e-mails, letters and other previously confidential documents. Those records and interviews with key players detail what happened behind the scenes:

• Concord City Council underestimated how Smith would react when, under pressure from homeowners near the proposed drag strip, they voted to block the project.

• Even after they realized their miscalculation, weeks slipped by before they developed a pitch to convince Smith to stay.

• Smith dispatched two old friends to negotiate for him, and they brainstormed the deal with public officials.

• To woo Smith, leaders sent him an overflowing fruit basket with pineapple and chocolates shaped like tiny race cars.

• And a last-minute decision cost taxpayers millions more than officials had expected.

Ultimately, leaders concluded that losing the speedway would be too big of an economic blow. So they agreed to a deal they still don't know how to pay for. Charlotte Business Journal