Photos by Melitza Beltran.
Construction for the 42nd Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach has kicked into high gear.
Mayor Robert Garcia was accompanied by Grand Prix Association of Long Beach President and CEO Jim Michaelian, Laborers Union Local 1309 Business Manager and Secretary/Treasurer Peter Santillan, as he placed the first of more than 14,000 concrete blocks on the road that will build the temporary race track.
During the course of the next 60 days, workers will include debris fencing, grandstand seating, power, telephone lines and many more amenities at the racetrack for more than 180,000 expected fans.
“It’s the biggest event we have in Long Beach every year and it’s a family-friendly event; it’s good for economic development,” Garcia said. “We fill our hotels up, we fill our restaurants up, fill businesses up, so it’s a great weekend.”
The event will feature the 40th Toyota Pro/Celebrity Race, Verizon IndyCar Series, Pirelli World Challenge, IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship, SPEED Energy Stadium SUPER Trucks and the Motegi Racing Super Drift Challenge on Friday and Saturday nights.
The 11-turn temporary street circuit will be 1.97 miles in length. Jim Michaelian, CEO and President of the Grand Prix Association of Long Beach, said the event’s national and international broadcast helps non-attenders see a “postcard” of the city.
“One of the beauties of doing an outdoor event is the fact that, unlike doing an event in the arena, or staples, or someplace like that, here the play field is the shoreline of Long Beach,” Michaelian said. “As a consequence of that, it literally forces them to cover what Long Beach has to offer.”
On April 15 through 17, the 42nd Toyota Grand Prix will whisk through the streets of downtown Long Beach, including the Long beach Convention and Entertainment Center, enveloping the Aquarium of the Pacific and a portion of the Pike at Rainbow Harbor complex.
“It’s our city and our city hosts a big race, the biggest street race in America, second-oldest street race in the world, and it’s something to be proud about,” Michaelian said.
