More losses expected for NASCAR shrine

After losing $409,000 between July and October, the NASCAR Hall of Fame expects to lose a total of $1 million to $1.3 million by the end of the current fiscal year next summer. Those projections from the Charlotte Regional Visitors Authority were included in a detailed analysis of the hall of fame's operations included in the regular Friday memo sent to City Council members this week. Losses in that range assume attendance in the range of 250,000 to 275,000 people for the year, a sharp reduction from several previous projections made before and after the hall of fame opened last spring. Even with 300,000 people visiting this fiscal year – attendance totaled 101,000 through the first four months – the hall of fame would still lose $544,000 for the year, according to the projections provided to the city. A slight profit occurs when attendance reaches 330,000.

Deficits are expected in the latest budget scenarios. Tim Newman, chief executive at the Charlotte Regional Visitors Authority, told the board he sees little chance of recouping the $409,000 lost during the first four months of the current fiscal year, but did not disclose the specific estimates released to the city later in the day. As those projections make clear, even with as much as $3 million in cuts expected next month, the hall of fame still anticipates more losses during the final eight months of fiscal 2011.

This week, the visitors authority, which operates the publicly owned hall of fame, reported audited results for October. Despite a $40,000 profit for the month – a dramatic improvement compared with September – the hall of fame missed earlier forecasts by a wide margin. The visitors authority anticipated a profit of $1.1 million through the first four months; instead, it's running a deficit of $409,000 at the $195 million hall of fame. Charlotte Business Journal

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