‘I heard the Grand Prix…’ Part I

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Baltimoreans love to talk about the Grand Prix. Some spout off about the traffic, the detours, the inconvenience and so forth. But most just muse over how the event is going – you know, whether it will be a success, whether “they’re” making money.

The Grand Prix of Baltimore is an easy conversation starter, even for people who don’t know or care about the details. Still, these conversations are a gold mine of information about how residents feel about the massive street race that has begun taking over their city.

Throughout the weekend, I will post snippets of random conversations I hear about the Grand Prix of Baltimore. I’ll flesh out what I think each comment reveals about public attitudes and knowledge (or maybe lack thereof) about the event.

Pedestrian No. 1: “…Well, the city is just interested in making a profit. Otherwise, why would they bother doing it…?”

This woman seems to have gotten her players mixed up. She said “the city” but the city isn’t the entity putting on the event; they’re not the big investor here hoping to turn a profit. That role falls to Race On LLC, the private ownership group.

The city is banking on revenue from taxes (on sales, hotel rooms, tickets, etc) and financial compensation from Race On in exchange for lending its police, fire, traffic and sanitation departments and helping in other ways to pull off the event.

But make a profit? No. At least, not at first. Last year, Race On paid Baltimore $350,000 up front for its troubles but city officials estimated they actually spent more like $800,000 in worker overtime pay, cleanup and other costs.

Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake has been bullish about the Grand Prix of Baltimore since the inaugural race two years ago. She is happy to subsidize the event in return for nationwide exposure and the millions of dollars in indirect benefits that supposedly got pumped into the city’s economy. (But that’s a topic for another blog post.)

Race On is obviously interested in making a profit. Like Pedestrian No. 1 said, why else would someone put on a huge spectator event?

Well, this year, they’re doing it to prove a point, to prove that an event like this can work in Baltimore – not because they think they’ll make money. Actually, they’re pretty sure they won’t.

Race On is still in the red, and owner J.P. Grant isn’t quite sure when, if ever, the Grand Prix of Baltimore will make it to the black, despite a five-year contract with the city.

Pedestrian No. 1’s comment reveals that some residents don’t have a good handle on who is actually paying for the Grand Prix of Baltimore and who stands to benefit. Because it’s backed by public officials, it’s easy to forget it’s a private venture to benefit private interests.

There is good reason to believe the city as a whole will also benefit – perhaps in intangible ways if not through direct economic impact – but it’s still important to keep the players straight.