The Las Vegas Grand Prix is seeking $40 million from Clark County to help cover the costs of infrastructure work for the race arriving this fall.
County commissioners on Tuesday voted 4-3 in favor of a resolution to start negotiations for a potential public-private partnership with the Grand Prix.
Tuesday's approval only means Clark County would enter negotiations with race organizers, with no obligation to make any payments. Still, several commissioners voiced concerns about the size and timing of the request. The Las Vegas Grand Prix is scheduled for Nov. 16-18, a little over five months from the date of the meeting.
Stephanie Allen, representing the Formula One racing event, said the total expected cost of improvements on the county streets and safety mechanisms is $80 million, and the Grand Prix is asking the county to share half of that cost. She noted that the final number would be subject to negotiations should the resolution be approved.
Commissioner William McCurdy asked how all parties reached the point where Formula One is already making improvements before Tuesday's request for cost-sharing.
"From our perspective, there is no obligation," Allen responded. "We're making a request today because there's a significant public purpose related to the improvements to Clark County's roads that you all will own after those improvements and have exclusive use of after those improvements, with the exception of during the race on an annual basis."
Terry Miller with project management said anything being built now is funded by Formula One's parent company Liberty Media, via the Las Vegas Grand Prix.
Explaining that the $80 million figure was new to him, Commissioner Chair Jim Gibson said he believed negotiations would give the county a chance to see the benefits of a potential investment, though he cautioned that there is no commitment as of yet.
"I get that there's some expectations. Well, expectations are met sometimes, and sometimes they're not," Gibson said. "But we can't know that until we've had an opportunity to sit down."
Commissioner William McCurdy also supported opening negotiations but questioned if he could ultimately approve the Grand Prix's request for $40 million.
"[I] also really want to emphasize that it's never a good feeling of being in a position to- to either support or not, in terms of a $40 million contribution from the county, with all that we have going on," said McCurdy, who voted in favor of the resolution.
On the other side, Commissioner Marilyn Kirkpatrick vented some pent-up frustration during Tuesday's meeting. Voting against the resolution, she said she was "tired of being left at the table and being on the menu" and wanted to know if the same request would come before the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority.
"I'm pretty bitter with the way some of the legislators treated our legislative staff this past weekend, thinking that we have more money than God. And here we are. We're portraying that we got more money than God," Kirkpatrick said. "We're coming to the table and $40 million- what's $40 million? I'll tell you what, in our capital budget, that's a lot. That's somebody's parks. That's somebody's recreation center. That's some building that has duct tape on the carpet, because we haven't made it a priority."