After nearly a year of planning, the NASCAR Chicago Street Race is here. Will it rev up the city’s economy as promised?
After months of planning, weeks of disruption and an 11th-hour push to complete the transformation of Grant Park into a pop-up NASCAR track, ready or not, the inaugural Chicago Street Race has arrived.
The July Fourth weekend event is expected to draw 50,000 fans, generate nearly $114 million in economic impact and provide hours of national TV coverage to burnish Chicago’s image as a gleaming lakefront tourist destination — assuming the Canadian wildfire haze dissipates.
But for the city at large, and the hotels, restaurants, museums and retailers near the 2.2-mile route, there is a mix of optimism and angst over how the first street race in NASCAR’s 75-year history will play out, beyond creating an unusual downtown traffic jam.
“We know that access to the Museum Campus will be more challenging, but there will also be a lot of tourists coming in for the race,” said Jennifer Howell, a spokesperson for the Adler Planetarium. “Truly, we won’t know until we have experienced it.”
Part of a three-year deal between the Chicago Park District and NASCAR, the Grant Park 220, a nationally televised Cup Series race Sunday, will feature a 12-turn, 2.2-mile course, with top drivers navigating closed-off streets lined with temporary fences, grandstands and hospitality suites. A separate Xfinity Series race is set for Saturday.
The weekend’s festivities include full-length concerts headlined by Miranda Lambert, the Chainsmokers and the Black Crowes.
Tickets range from $269 for two-day general admission to more than $3,000 for the premium Paddock Club overlooking the start/finish line at Buckingham
