Economic Impact Statement of a Motorsport Park

23 Feb Economic Impact Statement of a Motorsport Park

Why a Drag Strip & Motorsports Facility

• Vancouver Island lacks any permanent racing facility for drag racing, the world’s most participated in form of racing (the average street car can compete).
• Port Alberni’s Thunder in the Valley is in danger of loosing its use of the Port Alberni airport.  This annual event has brought millions of dollars to their economy.
• The Island has a large contingent of racers with only temporary facilities (Alberni & Port McNeill)
• Although the main use would be drag racing, this area would open for other needs ( similar venues accommodate a wide variety of recreational and other activities, including: road racing, motocross, bicycle racing, police training, professional driving schools, and club events for car enthusiasts.

Economic Impact

• With a captive audience of over 750,000 Island residents, the facility would be widely used.  Having the only permanent facility on the Island would fill a significant need.
• More importantly from an economic perspective, a racing facility acts as a magnet that attracts users and visitors to the community, whose spending represents a significant, ongoing economic stimulus to the local economy.
• Finally, as a local venue, it keeps spending by thousands of local motor sports enthusiasts, and others on the Island. Effectively, it is a mechanism allowing them to “buy local.”

Land

• Ideally, the facility would be located near an airport for the following reasons:
  • Airports are built on large areas of flat land.
  • Airports generate noise, and so does a racing facility.
  • Airports are accessible to the driving public.
• Approximate ideal size of the land would be 500’ wide & 4000’ long. 

Development & Operations

• Could be community owned and operated or privately operated.
• Our not-for-profit society is gathering a group to spearhead the project.
• The property would have the ability to accommodate many types of recreational use.

Interesting Info from Portland International Raceway (PIR)

(Although PIR has a larger population to draw from, this information is relevant.  To have the only facility of its kind on Vancouver Island would definitely create a significant economic impact to the community).

PIR is City owned and operated by their Parks & Recreation Department.

PIR held approximately 650 days of events in 2004. (Event days are greater than calendar days because the facility was double and triple booked on most days during peak season.) PIR estimates that track participants, spectators, and others made approximately 420,000 visits to the raceway in 2004.

*Interesting Survey Result* – approximately 87.4 percent of the person visits by non-residents would not have occurred if it were not for PIR. This result clearly indicates that PIR is the primary draw

Below is an example from an Economic Impact Study for Portland International Raceway (PIR).  Although they may have a larger drawing area, we draw from the entire Island so it could be relevant.

• An increase of $45.3 million in output (a measure of overall economic activity);

• An increase of 690 full- and part-time jobs;

• An increase of $16.9 million in wages;

• An increase of $2.7 million in income for small business owners;

• An increase of $5.6 million in various other types of income such as rents, royalties, dividends and profits received by residents, local businesses, and others; and

• An increase of $2.6 million in revenues for state and local tax jurisdictions that includes approximately $1.2 million in additional property tax revenues for Multnomah County.

The primary revenue source for PIR is rent paid by users of the facility. PIR also earns revenues for the City of Portland through advertising and by renting parking spaces to the nearby Expo Center. As shown in Table 1, PIR earned $1,587,859 in calendar year 2004.  (See table in the PDF)

For the full survey go to:  https://www.portlandoregon.gov/parks/article/184066

Download the PDF