Even looking at this from the spectator side of things, Columbus Motor Speedway was a 1/3 mile short track, nothing fancy, and they filled that place up whether it was for late models, compacts, NASCAR's K&N series, or the true hilljack stuff like the school bus demolition derby or whatever. The track was in a shitty part of the south side of town and it was still successful for decades. We can get 17k people to show up at the Crew stadium for a fucking soccer game, so surely we could get a halfway decent crowd to support another short track, no?
Maybe I underestimate the power of stupid people. I mean look at the Polaris Amphitheater, they tore it down because the twats who bought houses nearby complained about the noise, and apparently those are the people we cater to nowadays. But hey, it all worked out, they built a fucking IKEA there