Miami GP plan takes fresh twist as county mayor steps in

The Miami Herald reported on Saturday that the delegation of county administrators – including Police and Fire Department chiefs – would travel to Singapore and get first-hand experience of how a F1-standard street race operated, in a trip costing around $18,000.

But on Tuesday, mayor Carlos Gimenez – whose son CJ has been lobbying in favor of the race – lifted a self-imposed recusal on the matter and intervened.

In a statement, he said: “Upon further reflection, I’ve asked the directors of PortMiami, Miami-Dade Police and Miami-Dade Fire to cancel their departments’ trip and to look for a venue closer to Miami-Dade County.”

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Although the county delegation’s trip is off, a group of Miami city officials – including event administrators and Police – will attend the Singapore race as planned at the invitation of F1.

Plans to run the Miami Grand Prix in 2019 were shelved in July, and the next city-level discussion was pushed back until later this month. October 2020 is now the targeted date for the inaugural event.

Meantime, plans are progressing for the F1 Live fan event in Miami on October 17-21. The latest plan is to base it in the Bayfront Park area, with an F1 demonstration planned to run along 700 metres of Biscayne Boulevard, with a ‘donut area’ at NE 5th Street.

This event, as well as the grand prix plan, continues to face opposition from downtown residents, who are concerned about the noise and disruption they would cause.