(CBS-DETROIT) – In place, ready, off! The Detroit Grand Prix is back!
“Obviously the engines are revving and we’re ready to go,” Downtown Detroit Partnership CEO Eric Larson told us.
Detroit is ready for another weekend of racing and fun for the Detroit Grand Prix, but tickets are selling out quickly.
You can get them in person at the West Box Office on Jefferson, the GM Renaissance Center or the East Box Office on Woodbridge.
Grandstands 1 and 9 will be offered as free general admission seating on Friday as part of the Comerica Bank Free Prix Day.
“We learned where some of the public viewing experience that is free could be improved and give people a better viewing platform,” Larson said.
Streets around the circuit – have already started closing. They are all expected to be open again next Friday.
CBS News Detroit is told that less on-street parking can only mean more pedestrians for businesses!
“During the NFL draft we saw such a huge uptick in business that we panicked a little and ordered way too many things; I think we’ll just take it easy, let it roll in and see what happens,” Michael Hans, Greenwich manager said Time Pub.
According to Hans, turnover has increased by almost 40% this year compared to the same period last year. He attributes most of the success to the influx of events in the city.
This is the second Grand Prix in downtown Detroit since the return. For years the event was hosted on Belle Isle.
“The nice thing about the Grand Prix, it’s an annual bull’s-eye, the NFL draft was a great boost for us, but it’s a once-in-a-lifetime event,” Larson said.
