race nixed
Booba
the Peace River can't get the required permits in time.
By LAUREN MAYK - Sarasota Herald Tribune
posted 09/20/02
PUNTA GORDA -- A powerboat race that was to have been held on the Peace
River this fall has been postponed for a year because organizers could not
assemble the necessary permits in time.
The announcement in June that Punta Gorda's Gilchrist Park would host the
Powerboat Superleague championships drew criticism from environmentalists
concerned about wildlife, but praise from supporters who believe the event
would bolster Charlotte County tourism.
Punta Gorda was still listed Thursday as the tentative site for the
championship races Oct. 26-27 on the APR Superleague Web site.
About 40 tunnel boats were expected to race on the rectangular course near
the U.S. 41 bridges and draw up to 15,000 spectators. The boats ride on two
fiberglass pontoons and can reach 115 mph.
APR Events Group, the company that runs the Superleague races, will continue
its practice of concluding the year without a championship race, said
Charlotte County tourism director Becky Bovell.
Instead, the first Superleague championship race will be in Punta Gorda in
October 2003, she said.
"I'm disappointed," Bovell said. "We had hoped to have it this year."
Bovell said the race organizers had not secured any of the compliance
letters needed from the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, the
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the U.S. Coast Guard.
"It's a very complex procedural process, as we discovered," she said.
The organizers, which included Clear Channel Communications and the
Charlotte County Tourist Development Bureau, are already working on getting
the race approved for next year, Bovell said.
Race opponents such as the Save the Manatee Club were encouraged by the
delay Thursday, but still vigilant about pointing out the potential risks of
racing in the Peace River. The club had protested the race in letters to the
Fish and Wildlife Service and the Coast Guard.
"We're relieved that manatees aren't going to be at risk this year, but
high-speed events like this one are inappropriate," said Laura Combs,
Southwest Florida regional coordinator of Save the Manatee Club.
Some local businesses had already made preparations for this year's race.
Best Western Waterfront in Punta Gorda set aside a block of rooms for the
weekend, but hotel officials knew about the permit troubles, Bovell said.
"We've been keeping them apprised and they realized that this might not
happen," she said.
The tourism bureau had earmarked $35,000 to sponsor the race, but no money
has been spent this year, she said.
Some race critics, however, argue that money has been wasted through the
time spent on the event by tourism employees.
"Just the employee time," said Punta Gorda Councilman Thomas D. Poole. "Look
at the time that's gone into it."
Poole, like a number of environmentalists, also questioned the wisdom of
holding the race in the Peace River near manatees, turtles and other
wildlife and delicate vegetation.
"I think they just ought to get it out of the confines out there where there
is a lot of sea life," Poole said.
Other financial sponsors for the race included Charlotte Regional Medical
Center, Peace River Distributing, Clear Channel Communications and the
Herald-Tribune.
Jeff
The permits were applied for in May, this is more a failure of the
permitting process. Too bad for the area and powerboat racing in
general.