Mayor seeks Formula One deal with Hard Rock Stadium
Stephen Ross’ longrunning quest to bring Formula One Racing to South Florida got a major boost Thursday when Miami Gardens Mayor Rodney Harris offered up a joint resolution with Hard Rock Stadium designed to address the concerns of local activists.
The resolution, on which the city council will vote at Wednesday’s meeting, comes five months after more than a dozen Miami Gardens residents accused Miami-Dade County and then-Mayor Carlos Gimenez of racial discrimination in a federal lawsuit that seeks to block the race.
Under the proposed memorandum of understanding, which could make Miami Gardens the first majority AfricanAmerican city to host a Formula One race in the circuit’s 72-year history, race organizers will pledge an economic package that includes a $5 million commitment and benefits for residents, businesses and restaurants.
As part of the package, organizers would also create a STEM program in the city and provide internships to city residents.
Another important concession to critics: The race would not be held on Northwest 199th Street.
Additionally, Hard Rock Stadium and race promoters would also erect noise mitigation barriers on the north side of any section of the track adjacent to the Snake Creek Canal to protect residents, plus perform air quality and noise monitoring during the race. The race also pledged to address certain ingress and egress concerns.
The proposed resolution is the latest in a long line of attempts to bring F-1 to Miami-Dade by Ross, who owns the Miami Dolphins and wants to build a racetrack around his football stadium. His original idea was to race in downtown Miami, but residents played a role in thwarting those plans. The focus then shifted to Miami Gardens, where organizers were again met with resistance.
Miami Gardens residents, led by former Miami-Dade commissioner Betty Ferguson, first sued the Dolphins and Formula One in state civil court more than a year ago. In October 2020, residents withdrew the previous suit and filed a civil rights lawsuit alleging Gimenez, then the county mayor, the Miami Dolphins organization and Formula One, all of whom are named as defendants, engaged in a conspiracy to bring the race to the city despite their protests.
Thursday’s news blindsided Ferguson considering that Harris, then a city councilman, voted in opposition of the race in 2019.
“It goes against everything the community stood for,” Ferguson said, adding that the proposal looked like the Dolphins wrote it.
Ferguson, who had found out about the proposal just hours earlier, plans to attend Wednesday’s meeting.