By Alan Snel, LVSportsBiz.com Publisher-Writer
Formula 1 race organizers in Las Vegas submitted a traffic plan to Clark County government on May 1 only five days ago for the 2024 Las Vegas Grand Prix.
But Clark County government is refusing to make this record accessible to the public.
That’s how things work around here in fabulous Las Vegas.
Literally thousands of local workers and visitors on the Strip talked in graphic terms about the traffic nightmares and commerce losses caused by the car race promoter as it spent months converting 3.8 miles of public roads in the Strip corridor into a closed racetrack.
It was allowed by Clark County commissioners so that Las Vegas’ hotel companies can impress shareholders and analysts with quarterly earnings reports showing more revenues were generated on F1 race weekend in November 2023 than the year before for the same weekend.
Big hotels on the Strip like the Bellagio, Caesars and Wynn, indeed, made money from the inaugural Las Vegas Grand Prix Nov. 16-18.
But all the lofty economic impact numbers heralded by tourism boosters failed to take into account the financial losses to commerce suffered by small businesses caused by the F1 race preparation and the impact of months’ worth of traffic jams and closed roads.
LVSportsBiz.com made several requests to Clark County for the 2024 Las Vegas Grand Prix traffic report, which was submitted Wednesday.
Clark County said the report is a “draft” and not allowed to be seen by the public.
That counters the state open records law.
ADVERTISEMENT
Shop at Jay’s Market at 190 East Flamingo Road at the Koval Lane intersection east of the Strip.
ADVERTISEMENT
The seven members of Clark County’s governing board appeared out of their league in evaluating and assessing the Las Vegas Grand Prix’s impact on business and life on the Strip and surrounding roads.
They believed the promotional words of LVCVA chief Steve Hill and his trusty sidekick and friend Jeremy Aguero without a skeptical eye. Aguero was also the Las Vegas Grand Prix consultant who did an economic impact report for F1. LVSportsBiz.com could not verify those numbers, and is therefore not publishing them.
If only the county commissioners applied the same level of scrutiny and regulations to F1 as they did to sidewalk vendors and walkers stopping on pedestrian bridges along the Strip.
The county’s seven commissioners handed over the public roads without receiving compensation for Clark County.
F1 just held a race event in South Florida. But did race organizers hold its road in South Florida’s most high-profile setting, South Beach on the ocean?
No.
The race was in northwest Miami-Dade County at the Miami Dolphins football stadium, far from any business or dense population center.
Here’s an explanation about why the F1 event in Miami at at the stadium.
“The Miami Grand Prix is organized by South Florida Motorsport LLC, a subsidiary of the Miami Dolphins, and they chose to leverage their existing infrastructure and resources at Hard Rock Stadium to create the Miami International Autodrome,” said Joslyn Garcia of the Las Vegas Grand Prix.
“That said, every race is different. Like LVGP, Monaco and Singapore – which are two of the most popular races on calendar – are temporary street circuits that take place each year on city streets in the heart of the destination,” she said.
“Other races, like Silverstone and Spa-Francorchamps, are considered legacy races with permanent tracks that were built nearly a century ago, and the tracks themselves have become historic landmarks and are used year-round.”
Here in Las Vegas for the LVGP, Clark County gave carte blanche to the race organizer to use the Strip.
The race’s fences, light mounts and concrete barriers limited access for customers to reach many local businesses.
Some of those businesses have launched a petition urging the county commissioners to not approve a Special Use permit for the three-day race event in November until the 2023 traffic problems are fixed and the businesses are reimbursed for their losses caused by the Las Vegas Grand Prix.
“To date, F1 has not held a public meeting or even sat in a room with all of us together who lost millions in 2023,” said Gino Ferraro, owner of Ferraro’s Ristorante. “F1 is selling tickets and moving ahead as if these issues do not exist, as if we do not exist. My family restaurant has been here for 39 years, we matter.”
“We know many more people were negatively impacted by the F1 race in 2023,” added Randy Markin, Owner of Battista’s Restaurant and Stage Door Casino. “Uber drivers, casino employees, and other business owners up and down the Las Vegas Strip were negatively impacted. We firmly believe that we need public input on this event that proved to be devastating to my business and others.”