The NASCAR HOF, which celebrated its first anniversary yesterday, said that it "has attracted 274,000 visitors since opening -- second only nationwide" to the Baseball HOF, according to Steve Harrison of the CHARLOTTE OBSERVER. The Charlotte Regional Visitors Authority, which runs the NASCAR HOF, said that the facility "lost $184,672 in March, on attendance of 15,881." That "brings the hall’s loss in the first nine months of the fiscal year to $1.33 million." Before the HOF opened, the CRVA projected a "nearly $800,000 surplus." But with attendance "lower than projected, the CRVA has slashed more than $4 million in expenses."The CRVA "projects the hall will finish the year with a deficit of $1.29 million." That means the facility is "projected to break even for the months of April, May and June." NASCAR HOF Exec Dir Winston Kelley said that the HOF's "unaudited attendance for its first year shows 274,000 visitors, though that number includes roughly 12,000 people who visited in January during a free" weeklong open house (CHARLOTTE OBSERVER, 5/12).
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NASCAR HOF ATTENDANCE
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MONTH
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ATTENDANCE
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Dec. '10
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14,636
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Jan. '11
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23,177*
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Feb. 11
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12,391
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March '11
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15,881
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April '11
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20,618**
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NOTES: * = Includes nearly 12,000 visitors who came during a free open house. ** = Unaudited numbers.
