So the Bears appear to be leaving. Chicago, restart your engines.
A crew involved with NASCAR arrived in our offices the other day. We had a lot of questions about the first ever NASCAR Chicago Street Race, slated for July 1-2.
Yes, they allowed, it will be loud. Yes, there will be some inconvenient road closures around Grant Park in the week prior to the race and on the weekend itself. And the event’s concerts — the Black Crowes, Chainsmokers, Charley Crockett and Miranda Lambert all are playing for ticketed racegoers — will likely make downtown feel like Lollapalooza started early this year. Some downtown residents may well decide to decamp.
But our visitors also came armed with some impressive statistics: 100,000 attendees, 40,000 or whom will stay overnight; $50 million in NACSAR’s own spending; 850 jobs; $114 million in direct economic impact; hiring agreements in place with multiple unions, 24,000 busy hotel rooms with rates already going for $600 to $800 a night at a conference-free time of year that historically has lower occupancy rates than you might think. (So good luck if you plan to get married in Chicago that weekend).
Perhaps most useful of all: two days of live, international media coverage showcasing the summertime beauty of downtown Chicago in a way that’s not happened at least since the Blues
Brothers took to Lower Wacker Drive, which ain’t no Grant Park. And this is a three-year deal with various options to extend.
As Chicago Street Race President Julie Giese put it, “the races will put Chicago in the minds of people who don’t often think about it.”
Indeed. NASCAR skews more rural and southern in its fan base. Media organizations like Fox, which broadcasts NASCAR, long have used Chicago as a boogeyman, taking their cue from Donald Trump’s attempts to needle Rahm Emanuel. Some of those fans might be in for a surprise when it comes to what they find here.
And while there may be a few folks acting like fish out of water come July, they not only deserve a welcome but their attendance, and likely enjoyment, may be useful to the city in ways that go beyond economic impact studies.
Another key point here is NASCAR’s international fan base, which is far more significant than many people realize. That sector of tourists has been slow to return to Chicago, and this kind of publicity, assuming all goes well with the race, should be one more draw, even if that happens in future years.
All of this is especially relevant as the Bears now have closed on their Arlington Heights property acquisition, clearly an indication of seriousness of intent, if not entirely indicative of a done deal.
The Bears are a private business that sees opportunity in the suburbs, most notably increased revenue opportunities and the chance to control their own destiny in a stadium they can custom design and fully control themselves. They have that right — although not to taxpayers’ money — and, assuming this is bye-bye, we wish them well.
The site will allow the Bears to partner with new restaurants, bars and sports betting outlets. The old racecourse property has exceptionally good train and automobile access and will be convenient for many of their fans.
It is absurd to charge Mayor Lori Lightfoot with any “the mayor that lost the Bears” nonsense. Lightfoot is an avid Bears fan and did all she reasonably could to persuade the team to stay. They are choosing to go, attracted by shiny new things that neither Lightfoot nor Chicago should or can offer. And if the city can one day coax another NFL team to take the place of the Bears at Soldier Field, then the departing organization can have no complaint.
Obviously, that’s unlikely. In the meantime, Chicago will be just fine. Soldier Field is hosting Taylor Swift, Beyoncé, Ed Sheeran and Metallica this summer, and that’s even without any kind of post-Bears planning for the lakefront stadium.
We will hold NASCAR to its pledge that the races will be safely staged. Theydetailed their protective measures for us, including the installation of barriers and buffer zones, and the careful spacing of spectators. It’s also important to remember that, given all the turns on the planned course, the race cars will not be screaming by at 113 miles per hour, as is typical on custom-designed tracks, but at speeds closer to 50 miles per hour.
For fans, the fun will be in watching how the cars navigate the many turns that Chicagoans have driven themselves. And we will also hold Giese to her pledge not only that people who live downtown will be able to come and go but that NASCAR will leave the entire site, including roads and concert areas, “in as good, if not better, condition than when we arrived.” That’s crucial.
But, in contrast to what we see with the Bears, we also note NASCAR’s evident enthusiasm for the city and its ability to offer a uniquely attractive backdrop, along with all the hotel rooms, restaurants and live entertainment options any race-goer could want.
That enthusiasm, that willingness to do business here and promote the city, is infectious. And when we hear the world will be watching and enjoying, we take NASCAR at its word.