NASCAR Street Race returning to Chicago in 2024

Chicago's inaugural NASCAR Street Race in July faced major weather hurdles and truncated races, but city leaders and NASCAR are calling it a success that they're excited to repeat.

Driving the news: NASCAR and Mayor Brandon Johnson announced Wednesday that it will return to Grant Park next year on July 7-8.

What they're saying: "Our objective was to drive global attention and tourism to Chicago while introducing motorsports to an entirely new fan base, and by both measures, 2023 was a resounding success," Chicago Street Race president Julie Giese said in a statement.

The big picture: NASCAR and the city are using the second year of the three-year commitment to rectify some of the most resounding concerns about last summer's race.

• In addition to shortening street closings and traffic disruptions for setup of the race, NASCAR "has also committed to addressing costs incurred by city departments and agencies in facilitating and securing the event as consistent with other large-scale events," Johnson said in a statement.

The intrigue: The announcement comes on the heels of new findings from the Chicago tourism board's economic impact study, which suggests the event fueled an economic boost of more than $100 million to the city.

Yes, but: Some reports estimate the city spent at least $3 million on cleaning up the streets around Grant Park after the race, and that number doesn't include what the city paid police officers for overtime during race weekend.