Austin Grand Prix: “We’ve got the funding”
The promoter of the USGP in Austin Texas claims “We’ve got the funding, but we don’t have a billion dollars to build an Abu Dhabi.”
That’s according to United States Grand Prix promoter Tavo Hellmund who seems to have hit the “talk button” after the initial and less than satifying press reports.
And it looks like Bernie Ecclestone has his back. (for what’s that’s worth, sometimes it’s best he not have it)
I haven’t been called The Curmudgeon of Motorsports Pundits™ for nothing, and in keeping with that tradition I still find some things puzzling.
1. Why the initial deception by Hellmund? Out of the box he said there were three Austin locations in play and no land purchases have occurred.
Less than 48 hours later he not only has a location but he “optioned the land nearly three years ago” in addition to obtaining permitting for utilities, water and waste water,” and the purposed track has already been designed. It makes no sense to me.
And BTW the $200 million figure bandied about in the media for this project seems, shall I say lowballed. Texas Motor Speedway was built 15 years ago at a cost of $250 million, or $348,534,085 in 2009 dollars.
2. Hellmund said early on that “neither city nor state money would be used to build a track.” I asked at the time [will Hellmund]“and Ecclestone swear on a stack of Concord Agreements they will never, ever dip into the Texas Major Events Trust Fund?”
We now know that to be a lie misdirection. A letter sent on April 7 to Ecclestone and signed by Gov. Rick Perry, Comptroller Susan Combs and Hellmund promises $25 million per year in state support for the race from the state coffers.
So again we have another lie deception offered initially by Hellmund, and I don’t understand why. Why not lay it all out from the get-go, the details were there to be had but for some reason not shared until after the media firestorm started? And according to Hellmund an inbox slammed with 18,000 requests for interviews and additional information.
Excuse me while I put on my Curmudgeon of Motorsports Pundits™ hat.
Texas, by Texas I mean Gov, Perry on behalf of the taxpayer, are offering up $25 million per year in public money when just 9 short days ago Perry ordered $1.2B cut from the State budget. That’s a combination that won’t sit well with both taxpayers and those on the public doll as they see layoffs due to program cuts.
(As he places his Curmudgeon of Motorsports Pundits™ hat on the desk) The U.S. deserves a Grand Prix, what it doesn’t deserve is another F1 debacle like Indy 2005 and the follow-on Ecclestone/Tony George bruhaha, or the much ignored by the public Dallas events. Not to mention both Detroit and Las Vegas that weren’t The Spectacle that F1 is regarded to be.
In the end if it’s gonna happen fine, even if the targeted 2012 date slips a year or two, but don’t let Bernie turn this into another Donnington Park, or something worse. If that’s possible, Simon Gillette would argue it’s not.
A final thought: I wonder in a city that prides itself of being Green, claiming to have America’s #1 Green Building Program, just how the fume belching F1 Circus will fit in?
Will Bernie channel Kermit the Frog and sing his rendition of “It’s Not Easy Being Green!“
Marc, you need to slow down your speed reading genius and absorb the content.
1. There is a difference between the state budget and the TRUST fund. Two different pools of money. The trust fund was established to support these kinds of events.
2. There will be (at least not yet) no state or local tax dollars committed to building the track; the trust fund money is committed to running the event, on an annual basis. If this what it takes to compete against sovereign government subsidies to land a U.S. GP and Texas is willing to pay the vig, why should we care?
3. As far as the promoter telling differing stories at differing times, he has obviously studied at the knee of the master, Bernie Ecclestone, and learned a thing or two about misdirection.
Having said all that it’s time for the guy to walk the walk and git’ ‘er done. I’m a lot more confident in the knowledge there may be a Texas F1 road trip in my future then I was a day or two ago.
Well, I’d be more confident as well but…. you might wanna read where the Trust’s cash come from.
Wading thru all the legalese gobbly-gook it’s funded by various taxes already on the books but diverted for use of supporting certain sporting events.
Again if I read it right, taxes collected during the month of any event selected to use the Fund is placed into the Fund for the events use.
In other words, public money, money normally used for one thing or another but now used to for the USGP (or other events).
Public money no doubt, earned from the hide of the tax payer regardless of what it is called. The real point is it is funding that is in place and doesn’t (or may not) require a special legislative act. More then half the battle IMHO.
This will not (if I understand a trust definition) require an increase in general taxes or cutting one program to subsidize this program.
There could well be a skirmish amongst Texas legislative folk over this deal, but it will be more about who gets what piece of this pie as opposed to the pie in general.
Agree, there seems to be no new taxes or fees at least from what we know now but you know how that works.
The politicians always find some “emergency” or another to hike stuff regardless of real need.
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