USGP update

Tavo Hellmund, founder of U.S Grand Prix promoter Full Throttle Productions LLP, addressed the Real Estate Council of Austin on Wednesday and said a traffic study will be completed within 30 days.

According to the Community Impact newspaper, Hellmund said the study conducted by Kimley-Horn and Associates Inc. and Graham Lake-Grange is almost complete, and that he will make "three or four" additional "big announcements" regarding the yet-to-be constructed facility just outside of Austin. Those announcements are expected to include events other than the Formula One race, which Hellmund wants to launch in 2012.

Hellmund said on Wednesday that the venue "will host up to four or five big events annually," including music concerts–something many racetracks have taken to hosting in recent years as a way to supplement their income. He also said that the venue will serve an educational role, with the University of Texas at Austin, Texas A&M and others using the place for engineering research and development.

"Our goal is to not have just a race," Community Impact quoted Hellmund as saying. "Of course we recognize that's going to be the crown jewel for the first two or three years. But if we build this as we envision, someone is going to be driving down [the road] and see the signs for the facility and say, 'That's where the blankity blank is, and oh yeah, that's where they had the grand prix.'"