Baltimore might be the pick of Indy Racing League, but is Baltimore ready to embrace Indianapolis 500 cars zooming down city streets at 180 miles per hour? Baltimore Racing Development's announcement Monday that the IRL is ready to roll through Baltimore in 2011 is great news, but only if organizers can make their case that the benefits outweigh the headaches.
Small wonder that Mayor Sheila Dixon was left waving the yellow caution flag. "The city must carefully consider the costs of this event ... against the competing economic interests," the mayor's statement explained.
Running Indy cars around the Inner Harbor would no doubt disrupt downtown traffic and create a substantial (and noisy) ruckus in the eyes of some. It also costs money to properly pave the streets involved (although some repaving is already planned for the area). But the benefits are considerable: up to $100 million in spending over three days. That's more than the Preakness-related events generate each year.
