The Verizon IndyCar Series’ season finale in 2016 is set to be run in the Seaport District of South Boston, the Boston Herald reported today.
Boston hasn’t held a major racing event since the early 1900s when people like Barney Oldfield and Paul Sartori raced around the Readville Race Track in Boston’s Hyde Park neighborhood, but its sinewy streets and goat-path avenues have long been suggested for some kind of a premier racing event.
The city is going to get just that on Labor Day 2016, when the Grand Prix of Boston kicks off. The Herald reports that the official word on the race will be announced tomorrow.
“The hope is that this will be an annual event in the city of Boston,” Grand Prix of Boston spokeswoman Kate Norton said.
Mayor Martin Walsh communicated with IndyCar CEO Mark Miles in June of 2014 expressing interest in holding a race. It’s part of a major push to bring much higher-profile events to the city of Boston. The city was selected as the United States’ proposed host city for the Summer Olympics in 2024.
The plan is to run the race on a temporary, modular course on the streets in the Seaport District in South Boston, much of which was revitalized during the Big Dig.
The event is expected to bring 250,000 spectators to Boston, with a potential economic impact of $75 million to $80 million.
