A Las Vegas casino’s lawsuit against the city’s annual Formula One race took an interesting turn recently.
Ellis Island Casino sued the Las Vegas Grand Prix following the 2023 race but is now an official race venue for the 2025 running.
Ellis Island is located near the Grand Prix Plaza on Koval Lane. The property will now host F1 fan zones and other events for the race weekend in November.
“We are thrilled to be growing our partnership with Ellis Island,” Las Vegas Grand Prix President and CEO Emily Prazer said. “Over the last two years, we have committed to working with the community and local businesses to ensure they are part of the race-week excitement. Ellis Island is not only a great partner for us but also offers fans another exciting viewing location along the circuit.”
From Legal Challenges To Key Partner
Ellis Island’s original legal complaint alleged traffic congestion and other issues with the event negatively affected customers, vendors, and casino operations. This resulted in the casino spending “hundreds of thousands of dollars to employ their own flaggers” to help alleviate traffic congestion.
The family-owned casino reported losing $4 million because of the race. The lawsuit alleged participating partner casinos were misled about the extent roads would be closed, noting that the project manager previously represented that “entrances/exits for Ellis Island will not be impacted during construction.”
The lawsuit said that scenario wasn’t the case, costing the property significant business. Ellis Island also alleged casinos and other businesses dealt with unexpected changes in race operations and infrastructure.
However, the case was dismissed in September and the Las Vegas Review-Journal reported that race officials have been working with local groups and businesses to improve after some initial struggles. The first year included nine months of road disruptions.
The infrastructure disruptions were reduced in the second year and race officials comped tickets for many local residents. Ellis Island management was pleased with the new agreement with the race.
“As we enter into this partnership with our neighbors on Koval Lane,” Ellis Island owner Gary Ellis said, “we look forward to working with Las Vegas Grand Prix to extend our offerings at Ellis Island during race weekend and beyond.”
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