They do it in St. Petersburg, Fla., Toronto and Long Beach, Calif.
But is Baltimore the proper setting for an IndyCar race on a looping, 2.4-mile street course around the convention center and Camden Yards?
Organizers of the proposed Baltimore Grand Prix know that the prospect of racing cars around the Inner Harbor area sounds scary. The group is using the example of other cities that have staged such downtown races to try to make a case to Baltimore that they are safe - and an economic boon.
Among those recently delivering a message to Mayor Sheila Dixon - in the form of a videotaped testimonial - was Long Beach Mayor Bob Foster. He sat at his desk with his hands clasped in front of him and urged the mayor "to do her homework."
"There are issues you have to deal with," Foster said in the testimonial, forwarded to the mayor's office by Baltimore Racing Development, a limited liability company headed by Steven Wehner, a Baltimore-based entrepreneur.
"There are traffic issues, safety issues and other things. Those are manageable, particularly if you have a good race partner," Foster said. "I would urge her to carefully consider it because, for us, it's made a dramatic improvement in Long Beach. And I think it would make a world of difference for Baltimore."
Foster said in an interview that the nationally televised race, held in Long Beach for 35 years, helped the city transform its image from a "Navy town" to a tourist destination. "I know Baltimore is a city that kind of revitalized itself also," Foster said.
Dixon has made no decision about the race, which organizers say would generate as much as $100 million during four days of events. Terry Hasseltine, director of the state's office of sports marketing, concurred with that economic estimate.
Long Beach brings in about $30 million from the race in hotel stays, restaurant visits and other spending, Foster said. Baltimore has about twice the population of Long Beach and would be expected to draw race fans from Washington, Philadelphia and New York.
"This is a market in the Mid-Atlantic region that they [the Indy Racing League's IndyCar Series] would love to get into," said William Cole, a City Council member who represents the race area.
The next step is for the City Council to approve a resolution - sponsored by Cole - this summer authorizing Baltimore Racing Development to negotiate with the Indy Racing League to get on the 2011 race schedule. BRD is looking for a date in the late summer or early fall and is proposing to stage the race for five years.
