You could go 245/40-17 front 255/40-17 rear, there's a ton more tire options in those sizes. That wouldn't give you much stagger, but it would be an easier fitment than 255 all-around as far as the front fenders go.

Honestly, unless you know you'll be competing and tenths will matter, I'd go with a staggered wheel/tire setup (8/9, 225/255) just to keep the front from feeling too heavy/numb/trucklike for normal driving.

There's a reason Corvettes went away from having 275s all around!

 

I would go with 8/9 wheel but I just don't like the way the face of the 8" wheel sticks out. The 9" wheel looks more caved in.

 

save the dish for the rear. If you're not going to do the square setup right, don't do it at all.

 

I would say go with a 300-400 treadwear tire for the first few track days, and then move onto a 140-200 treadwear tire if you want to experience how different tire setups feel. I don't see much point in going out of your way to buy staggered tire sizes to put on 17x9s. And 255/40/17 all around is a very popular setup for good reason.