Valérie Plante is cancelling Montreal's Formula E race

Montreal Mayor Valérie Plante is calling off the city’s Formula E race.

Plante made the announcement today. She took to Twitter to explain her reasoning behind the decision.

I was pretty clear during the campaign: the E-race won’t happen at the same location in 2018 and we must re-negotiate the deal so that Montrealers are not on the hook for tens of millions of dollars. #polmtl

— Valérie Plante (@Val_Plante) December 18, 2017

When we took office we immediately started looking into the #FormulaE file. What we discovered was not only troubling, it was shocking. #polmtl

— Valérie Plante (@Val_Plante) December 18, 2017

It became pretty clear as early as May 2017 that we were heading towards a financial fiasco. #polmtl #FormuleE

— Valérie Plante (@Val_Plante) December 18, 2017

We had 3 options in mind : moving the race to the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve, building a temporary race track somewhere else, taking a one year break in order to clean the house and work on a better business model. #polmtl

— Valérie Plante (@Val_Plante) December 18, 2017

My administration is willing to take risks and to invest money to promote Montreal, to attract international events, but not without a serious business case. #polmtl #FormuleE

— Valérie Plante (@Val_Plante) December 18, 2017

The administrators of the #FormulaE told me they couldn’t bridge the gap for 2018 because they are accountable to their stakeholders, I reminded them that we are accountable to the people of Montreal #polmtl

— Valérie Plante (@Val_Plante) December 18, 2017

Keeping the event in Montreal would cost taxpayers between 30 to 35 M$. #polmtl #FormuleE

— Valérie Plante (@Val_Plante) December 18, 2017

This is where we draw the line. The #FormulaE will not be back in Montreal under these conditions. #polmtl

— Valérie Plante (@Val_Plante) December 18, 2017

“This is where we draw the line. Formula E will not be back in Montreal under these conditions,” said Plante on Twitter.

Unpaid bills and the deficit caused by last year’s race are reportedly the reasons that Plante has decided to cancel the event.

During her election campaign, Plante said she would move the race to another location or cancel it completely.

Last month, it was announced that 45,000 people attended the race. But only 25,000 tickets were actually sold to the public, while the remaining 20,000 tickets were giveaways.

The Formula E race has become a controversial topic leading up to the municipal election. former mayor Denis Coderre stood by the event but has also remained quiet about ticket sales for months.

In total, the Formula E event cost an estimated $24 million and was heavily criticized for shutting down businesses and streets in order for organizers to set up and take down the race tracks.

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