This UPoR edit on Friday cracked me up. Back-peddling faster than Chris Gamble on a go route. Check it out:
The lagging attendance may prove to be nothing to worry about — a temporary blip caused by the recession. But the possibility that even more conservative attendance figures were too optimistic ought to teach a much-needed lesson to the many civic leaders who care about uptown. It’s a lesson that cuts against the grain for boosters who’d rather rip out their own fingernails than temper their public optimism. But when deciding whether to make a pitch for a big taxpayer-funded project such as the hall, and in deciding how to structure its financing, it’s important to consider the possibility that it just might fail to meet expectations. Yes, fail.
It’s unlikely the NASCAR hall will fail, and we certainly hope it doesn’t. But you’d be blind not to spot some clouds on the horizon: NASCAR track attendance has fallen this year. Among the top 10 sports measured by an ESPN Sports Poll, NASCAR topped the list for largest drop in avid fan base interest during 2009. Fox has seen a 29 percent decline in viewership from last year among men 18 to 34.
Did any of the hall’s multiple boosters sit down and pencil out how the city could re-use a large, expensive building that, in fact, isn’t suitable for much else? Would it go the way of the failed CityFair festival marketplace — demolition?
Let us trust that won’t happen to the hall. But we should also be able to trust – and we’re not sure we do – that early on, this question was taken seriously: “What happens if the people don’t come?”
Wow. An actual CityFair mention. Notice how low that sets the bar, however. Anything over and above a CityFair demolition for the $200m. NASCAR Hall is better than the worst possible. But, c’mon no one really thinks that will happen.
What will happen, though, is that the city of Charlotte will have to cover the millions the Hall fails to generate on its own. That is the real risk, that is real problem with these kinds of dubious projects — local taxpayers are always left to pick up the pieces.
Yet there is still denial on this front, which I think actually did embarrass some segments of the Uptown crowd.
“It’s far too soon to say there’s any kind of alarms you need to worry about,” is the way Winston Kelley, the executive director for the Hall of Fame, whistled past the graveyard. Move along, nothing to see here citizens. But watch how NASCAR reacts. See if drivers and teams start to hold events in the space. Watch NASCAR start to take a more active role in its Hall — before it is too late.
