Phish Concert

Approximately 30,000 people attended Phish's three-day Super Ball IX festival at Watkins Glen International Speedway on July 4th weekend in 2011. There are rumors the band will return to the speedway this summer.

(AP Photo/Finger Lakes Times,Spencer Tulis)

It's been four years since Phish hosted its last major festival -- Super Ball IX at Watkins Glen International raceway. Each year since, online rumors have hinted the band would return to the small, Finger Lakes town. Though nothing is confirmed, there are several pieces in place for a Super Ball reprise.

According to Corning's The Leader, Watkins Glen International plans to begin paving its racetrack Monday, Aug. 10. The project means the racing season at the Glen will end early.

In August, Watkins Glen President Michael Printup told the Ithaca Journal he would "love to have Phish come back." One of the hurdles, however, was the availability of the track.

The paving project, however, frees up the track for late summer.

"There's no question, since we did Phish, I've been on the hunt for a while, trying to find a good deal that would fit in," he told The Leader.

Additionally, the Schuyler County Legislature recently approved an agreement with Watkins Glen International that would lower the cost of law enforcement services for major events.

According to the Elmira Star Gazette, a five-year agreement with the track offers a 50% cut in law enforcement costs for events that draw more than 20,000 people. Legislature Chairman Dennis Fagan cited the 2011 Phish concert as an event that brought in $500,000 in county sales tax revenue.

Printup told The Leader there was no contract in place with a band and wouldn't say if anything was in the works. He has been vocal about wanting to bring the band back in the past.

Phish performs during the Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival in Manchester, Tenn., Sunday, June 10, 2012.

In previous years, Printup has

quashed rumors about the band coming to the Glen

. In the interview with The Leader, he neither confirmed nor denied the possibility of Phish returning.

Last, and probably least, the website PhishRumors.com posted in November that the band would play at Watkins Glen from Aug. 21-23. The fan-run website has a somewhat reliable track record of predicting dates.

Phish, a Vermont-based quartet with a highly dedicated fan base, has a history of putting on festivals in Upstate New York. In addition to the 2011 Super Ball IX, they hosted Clifford Ball, their inaugural festival, in Plattsburgh in 1996. In 1999, Camp Oswego drew 65,000 fans to Volney.

Syracuse tried to bring Phish to the War Memorial last spring, but the show fell through at the last minute.