Our Editorial: Grand Prix speeds Belle Isle recovery

The Detroit News | DetroitNews

The 100,000 race fans who made it out to Belle Isle last weekend for the 2017 Chevrolet Grand Prix couldn’t help but leave the island with pride in the Motor City. Fast cars are in Detroit’s DNA, and there is no better event to showcase the city’s island jewel. It benefits the city in myriad ways, and it should keep going for years to come.

Attendees aren’t the only ones to witness the event. The annual races are broadcast to the nation, which observes the cars roaring past crystal blue water with the Detroit skyline as a backdrop.

Belle Isle is an unparalleled space for the race. There are only four such urban races in the country each year, including Long Beach, California, and St. Petersburg, Florida.

“We are so lucky,” says Bud Denker, chairman of the Belle Isle event and executive vice president at Penske Corp. “What it leaves behind is a postcard to the world.”

The Grand Prix is a labor of love for Denker who, along with race organizer Roger Penske, brought it back to Belle Isle in 2007. The event typically operates at a loss of $1 million each year, and while Denker says he’d like it to at least break even, that’s not the point.

“It’s never been a financial goal — it’s not one of our priorities,” he says. “That million is well spent.”

While the races may not be a boon for event organizers, they certainly are for Detroit, especially Belle Isle. The economic boost to the city and region is significant. A 2014 study found the Grand Prix leads to a $45 million investment in the area the week of the races. And at this year’s opening gala last Friday, that event raised $750,000 in net profit for the Belle Isle Conservancy, money that will go to further upgrade the island.

Race organizers and partners have also invested more than $13 million in infrastructure improvements on the island since the event returned, including revamping the landmark Casino, comfort stations and the James Scott Memorial Fountain.

The benefits outweigh any inconveniences that accompany the Grand Prix. Yet some city residents have protested the event, saying it prevents them from enjoying the park for several weeks of the summer.

Denker says he is addressing those concerns and is working to reduce setup and take-down time to nine weeks from 11 weeks. But that’s as short a window as possible to ensure a safe race and successful event, he says.

And the park is still open to visitors during set up and tear down.

The Grand Prix has an agreement with the state Department of Natural Resources to operate on the island through 2018 and Denker is in the process of negotiating an extension, which he’d like to finish by the end of this year.

The DNR is planning to hold community hearings. But the state, which took over park operations several years ago to lift the burden off Detroit, surely understands what a great partnership this is, and the importance of keeping the Grand Prix on Belle Isle.