When the Indy Pro Series qualifying race comes to the Iowa Speedway in Newton this June, an estimated 40,000 racing fans will come with it.

That number doesn’t include the drivers and their teams, which usually include dozens of people each.

But the Indy Pro Series is just the beginning, said Mike Beecher, director of media relations for the speedway.

“From our current capacity of around 30,000, we can build out to more than 100,000 seats,” he said. “We are bringing in world-class races to Newton, and as the support grows, the caliber of the races will grow.”

Greg Edwards, president and CEO of the Greater Des Moines Convention and Visitors Bureau, said the speedway will have an economic impact not just in Newton, but all over Central Iowa. As more and more tourists are pulled into the area by the races, economic development eastward is inevitable.

“We’re already beginning to see it,” he said. “If you drive to Newton now from Des Moines, you’ll see several new hotels and commercial developments already under way.”

Newton Mayor Charles Allen said a “tourism triangle” is beginning to form, including Prairie Meadows Race Track and Casino and Adventureland in Altoona, the Iowa Speedway in Newton and the planned Earthpark in Pella.

“We already have a lot of big retail development knocking on our door,” he said. “I think you’re going to see economic development spurred by these attractions not just in Newton, but from Altoona to Iowa City.”

The notion that the majority of growth in Greater Des Moines is headed west may change, as the lure of tourist dollars draws commercial development back up Interstate 80, Beecher said.

“If this is successful, a lot of other things will fall into place,” he said. “You’ll start to see the switch of expansion east rather than west.”

As the caliber of the races grow, hotels, restaurants, shops and other businesses in the Des Moines area will feel the impact, Edwards said.

“Racing fans will fly in to our airport, stay in a local hotel, eat at a local restaurant, shop at Jordan Creek [Town Center] and leave behind a lot of money in our community before they go home,” he said.

Allen said when he went out for this year’s opening races, which drew around 13,000 people, he saw license plates on cars and R.V.’s from all over the country.

“Tourism is going to become a major industry,” he said. “And that is an industry that can drive a lot of other industry.”

Beecher said the idea of a major NASCAR race coming to the speedway is definitely a possibility, as officials are in discussions with the people who can make that happen.

“This is one of the most popular sports in the world,” he said. “We’ve already gotten press inquiries from Australia, Japan, the United Kingdom and South America, and we’ve sold season tickets to almost every state in the country. These races are huge draws.”

Allen said the development of the Iowa Speedway couldn’t have come at a better time for his community, which was reeling from the loss of Maytag Corp.

“When [Maytag] made the announcement last year, the town hit bottom,” he said. “I think we’ve really come out of that well. We have to remain cognizant that it is still very hard for those individuals who lost or are going to lose their job, but we are trying to turn the corner. Tourism is a piece, but diversity is the key.”

A development called Metro East, which lies on 240 acres just north of the track, is one project that has been spurred by the speedway. Allen said several commercial, retail and hotel projects are in the planning stages, as well as an idea for a water park.

“This is just one example of what the speedway, if successful, can bring to Iowa,” he said.

Edwards said the more Central Iowa can sell regional attractions, such as the speedway, Prairie Meadows and Adventureland, the better off the region will be as a whole.

“We’re all in this together,” he said, adding: “The state generated around $5.2 billion in tourism dollars in 2005. Polk County generated $1.1 billion. So tourism is already a major factor in our economy that will only grow as these new projects get under way.”

Though the big races will take place only three or four days a month, events will be held nearly 300 days a year, Beecher said, including test runs on new cars, concerts, auctions and driving schools, which will bring a lot of people into the area.