In case you were worried that you’d be able to hear anything in downtown St. Pete this weekend, Mayor Rick Kriseman has announced that the Firestone Grand Prix is still on.
Although two new cases of coronavirus have been announced in Pinellas County, Grand Prix co-owner Kevin Savoree said at a Wednesday press conference there haven’t been any conversations about holding the race without live spectators.
Instead, event organizers are adding hand sanitizing and washing stations, two hand-washing trailers with multiple faucets and plan to disinfect high-contact surfaces more often.
Kriseman said the two Pinellas county residents infected with coronavirus did not come in contact with many people. He added that the county’s risk factor is still low and has not yet experienced community spread.
“As Mayor, I want our residents and our visitors to this city to go about enjoying their lives, but do so using common sense,” Kriseman said. “We can allow for this disruption without interruption.”
Event organizers are also encouraging people to stay home if they’re feeling sick.
"If you don’t feel well, please stay home and watch the race on NBC Sports Network,” Kriseman said. “You’ll still see the race, and you can see how beautiful we look on TV.”
Savoree said the race pulls a regional crowd and, although the race includes foreign drivers, they’ve all been in the country for at least 14 days.
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This article appears in Mar 5-12, 2020.