Brookline Developer Gains Control of 72-Acre Route 1 Stock Car Track

Brookline real estate developer Alan G. Zuker has successfully acquired a controlling interest in the Norwood Arena Corporation, purchasing roughly two-thirds of the 85,000 shares in the Route 1 stock car track. According to his attorney, Walter H. McLaughlin Jr., Zuker’s acquisition does not signal an immediate or complete redevelopment of the 72-acre arena site or an adjoining 113 acres separately owned by Zuker. However, the majority stake grants Zuker the power to dissolve the corporation and shape the property’s long-term future.

Zuker, a longtime arena stockholder who had held 3,000 shares for two decades, secured control by acquiring major blocks of shares from corporation officers Wesley Plummer, H. William Anderson, and John Peterson, followed by smaller holdings and shares from minority stockholders. Backed by business associate Eli Ames of Brookline, Zuker paid $11 per share, bringing total potential acquisition costs for the remaining 82,000 shares to approximately $900,000, while assuming the corporation’s existing financial liabilities.

End of Ownership Stalemate and Racing Uncertainty

The buyout concludes a prolonged ownership stalemate that had previously thwarted at least five outside purchase offers, including a recent $1.5 million bid by Boston theater magnate Ben Sack that was rejected due to attached financial liabilities. Internal corporate divisions had long split the ownership, with a minority faction—championed by director of racing Carl Merrill—pushing to preserve the recreational complex and expand stock car promotions through community-friendly racing reforms. Following Zuker’s consolidation of power, Merrill resigned from his operational duties, stating that current management held no desire to maintain stock car racing.

Attorney McLaughlin noted that while future racing plans for the spring remain undecided, Zuker intends to petition town meeting in six to seven months for a zoning amendment. The developer plans to seek a change from the current light manufacturing zoning to permit either residential or commercial uses. Although the sprawling site could theoretically accommodate up to 1,200 apartments, McLaughlin emphasized that Zuker would propose a smaller-scale, “attractive” development initially to build goodwill with townspeople before considering any expanded construction.

Archival Note: This article has been dynamically reconstructed from the original public record print archives of the Patriot Ledger