PREAKNESS STAYS PUT ~ (Update: State/Horsemen to run MJC in 'Pimlico Plus' plan)
 

This is welcome and wonderful news.. inspiring against long odds. And everyone wins. Baltimore, Park Heights, The Triple Crown, the Maryland Jockey Club & Laurel too.. Congratulations to all that made this happen, particularly Alan Foreman who will join us on ATR Monday with the remarkable story and details.

'Historic’ deal aims to keep Preakness in Baltimore

https://www.baltimoresun.com/marylan...gze-story.html

The city of Baltimore and the owners of the historic but dilapidated Pimlico Race Course have come up with a way to keep the prestigious Preakness Stakes at the 149-year-old track in Northwest Baltimore.

The parties briefed The Baltimore Sun on the deal that could end vexing problems that have lingered for decades over funding for improvements, sports fans’ changing tastes, and tensions between local leaders, neighbors and the operators of the track. Last winter, the city sued the track owner, and officials of The Stronach Group said they were committed to holding the Preakness at Pimlico only through 2020.

Now, The Stronach Group has pledged to donate the land to the city or an entity created by the city for development in and around the track. Pimlico’s antiquated grandstand and clubhouse would be demolished. A new clubhouse would be built and the track rotated 30 degrees to the northeast to create nine parcels of land that could be sold for private development.

In all, Pimlico would receive $199.5 million as part of the project. Training and stable operations would be consolidated at The Stronach Group’s track at Laurel Park in Anne Arundel County, which would receive $173.4 million for improvements. The Stronach Group would look to divest itself of the Bowie Training Center.

When I read this article, I had a very different impression.

This agreement leaves the Preakness to be run on the same physical ground, but with a different race track (rotated 30 degrees), different grandstand, and no local stabling. Bowie will be divested from the Stronach portfolio resulting undoutedly in its final closure as a thoroughbred center and the short "new pimlico" (small "p") two-week meeting would surely not include a turf course with its expense.

All of this to leave a single two-minutes per year of horse racing focus in Northwest Baltimore?

Why not invest in a site that would have a longer term integrated story with Maryland or mid-Atlantic racing if some $350M is being spent? Honestly, it makes more sense to recast the Triple Crown without the Preakness at Pimlico/pimlico. Why not just allow the naming rights to the "Preakness" go to the highest bidder and move the race to that track?

Agree..this doesn't make sense for 2 minutes..the whole thing needs changed

Was moving the Preakness to Laurel an option ?

Of course there's a turf course for Pimlico. And a Tapeta winter surface for Laurel.

PROJECT DETAILS: https://www.dropbox.com/sh/5czsul7ka...cept+Plans.pdf

Looks really nice. Perfect mix of modern simplicity. Appropriate size and multi-use for what amounts to 2 days of racing a year. So glad the Preakness is staying in Baltimore!

Track remains an unchanged one mile oval.

The circumference might be the same, but this will be a physically different racetrack than the one over which the storied Preakness has been contested.

Let me share the broader concern regarding this new "clubhouse" and development. According to the prospectus, accomodations for approximately 50,000 are discussed in the PDF including infield areas. It would seem that some permanent structures are being built inside the oval, similar to how Chelmsford Racecourse was built in the UK.

If the current facility holds 100,000+ on Preakness Friday/Saturday, either they will limit the crowd through admission tickets or some other vehicle. That problem can be solved surely.

If you look at the "New Meadowlands", a smaller grandstand was built to handle today's modern day crowd. In the process, attendance for the Hambletonian has gone from 50,000+ to 12,000.

The point being that you cannot design a facilty for both 5,000 people and 100,000 people and hope to achieve the best experience on both ends of the spectrum.

For the life of me, I do not understand why a $100M uplift to the existing facility cannot be done with land sales forecast from the updated plan. Yes, you will not have nine industrial lots, but you will certainly have some.

Every racetrack, including Belmont and Churchill, are 'different' racetracks every time work has been done to their bases or materials added to their cushions.

You're reaching again.

Not really.

I want the turns to be no tighter than they are now. I'm too invested in this whole 'not tighter than Churchill no matter what some people try to claim' thing. ;)

VIDEO OF PRESENTATION 10/9 AT LRL

PIMLICO/LAUREL PLAN

Ship of Theseus.

:eek:


:tro:

Thank you for sharing the video replay. At least I have seen the material presented first hand.

The presentation brings me back to one of the very first questions I raised in this thread which happened to be the number one tenet in this proposal : Why is keeping the Preakness in Northwest Baltimore the absolute unbendable criteria? I now understand that this solution's genesis starts with that as an axiom, not a decision.

Assuming that this proposal moves forward, construction will likely take several years; conservatively at least one Preakness will be relocated, perhaps to Laurel. I wonder once that first Preakness at Laurel is held whether some folks start saying "gee, was that really so bad?"

Good luck to those involved in this project.

Can I have potpourri for $1000, Alex?

Redevelopment legislation process underway: https://www.baltimoresun.com/politic...3nu-story.html

Hearings go without a hitch.. Bowie arrangements among final details: https://www.baltimoresun.com/politic...jwq-story.html

Plan to renovate Pimlico and Laurel clears key hurdle in Maryland General Assembly: https://www.baltimoresun.com/politic...7hu-story.html

Not a straw in the path of the project..

With deal for Bowie in place, House vote today @ 12:30p which will send plan to Governor for signing..

After some anxious moments, Gov. Hogan permits the redevelopment bill to become law without his signature. It authorizes the Maryland Stadium Authority to issue up to $375 million in bonds, which would be paid back through casino proceeds already earmarked to subsidize the racing industry and through the Maryland Lottery.

https://www.baltimoresun.com/sports/...4je-story.html

Work will start immediately. Alan Foreman on ATR tomorrow with details, next steps.

The effort that has gone into this is mind blowing and Alan Foreman is responsible for not giving up against staggering obstacles. The materials in the plans are worth delving into with information gathered industry-wide..

RACING & TRAINING CENTER DEVELOPMENT

THOROUGHBRED RACING OPERATING MODELS

Maryland Horseman will operate MJC racing (using non-profit model of NYRA/Del Mar) with Stronach retaining Preakness Weekend hosting/marketing. Pimlico (rightfully) will be rebuilt and one of 3 potential facilities (Bowie or 2 farm properties) will be turned into a training center. (Next steps action plan below Hegarty's reporting)

Plan calls for state to take over Pimlico
Matt Hegarty | Jan 05, 2024

Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore will be deeded to the state, rebuilt, and converted to a year-round racing facility run by a not-for-profit operator under the recommendations of a task force that issued a report Friday to the Maryland’s legislature.

The task force, the Maryland Thoroughbred Racetrack Operating Authority, said in its report that the best path forward for racing over the long term would be for the state to assume the deed for Pimlico from its current owner, 1/ST Racing, rebuild the track, and develop a new year-round training center. The report said that the plan would be funded through $375 million in bonds authorized for the racing industry by the state legislature several years ago.

Under the plan, Laurel Park, another Maryland track owned by 1/ST, would continue to hold live racing for the four-year period that would be needed to rebuild Pimlico. However, beginning in 2025, the track would be run by a not-for-profit operator created by the authority that would also take over the operations of Pimlico once the rebuilding project is complete.

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According to the report, the authority and 1/ST have already begun negotiations on the aspects of the plan requiring 1/ST to transfer the deed to Pimlico to the state. The plan also states that the new not-for-profit company would “operate” the Preakness Stakes – the most valuable asset in Maryland racing – under a “licensing agreement” with 1/ST.

In a statement released after the issuance of the report, 1/ST said that it has already reached “an agreement in principle” that “will enable the MTROA to design and build an iconic racing venue at Pimlico and take over day-to-day racing and training in Maryland.” The statement was endorsed by Maryland Gov. Wes Moore.

The MTROA was created in 2023 to consider long-term options for the Maryland racing industry at a time when the differences between horsemen and 1/ST on a direction for the sport began diverging widely.

1/ST has said that the company is unable to generate a profit for its tracks under a current schedule that provides approximately 155 live racing days per year, while horsemen and breeders have said that any cuts to the live racing schedule would result in a significant weakening of the entire state’s equine industry.

Horsemen and breeders in Maryland receive approximately $60 million each year in subsidies from the state’s casinos. Over the past 11 years, a portion of those subsidies have been directed to 1/ST to assist in the operations of its tracks, under a private agreement between the two parties that maintained the 155-day live schedule.

The decision to consolidate racing at Pimlico is supported by all the major racing constituents in the state, and any plan to shutter the track and relocate the Preakness was considered dead in the water due to the impact of the facility and the race on the Baltimore community. Under the plan, the Pimlico property would be redeveloped to include a hotel with a 1,000-seat “event space,” and portions of the property would be allocated as “development parcels.” In addition, new housing would be built for backstretch workers near the site.

The report said that a rebuilt Pimlico would better align the track’s Triple Crown amenities with Churchill Downs and Belmont Park, the other two Triple Crown hosts. Churchill Downs has poured hundreds of millions of dollars into renovations because of the stratospheric revenue opportunities available from the Kentucky Derby, while Belmont Park is being rebuilt through the use of a state-authorized loan that will be paid off from gambling subsidies going to Belmont’s operator.

“The facilities at Pimlico no longer match the reputation of the event and lag behind other Triple Crown hosts that are each currently investing hundreds of millions of dollars in their facilities,” the report said.

Major elements of the plan will need to be approved by the state’s legislature, but the endorsement of the plan by Moore provides a critical element of support.

“The Authority’s report represents an important next step for the industry, and I look forward to working with the General Assembly and the Maryland Thoroughbred Racetrack Operating Authority to finalize an agreement that ensures this important industry continues to create jobs and drive economic growth for years to come,” Moore said in a press release.

• Finalize an agreement with 1/ST/The Stronach Group to transfer control of day-to-day Maryland racing and acquire title to Pimlico.

• Finalize a licensing agreement with 1/ST/The Stronach Group to operate and promote the Preakness Stakes and the Black-Eyed Susan Stakes.

• Develop a detailed transition plan for Maryland racing to move from a for-profit model to a public/not-for-profit model by January 1, 2025.

• Seek approval to assume control of Maryland horse racing and to fund the Authority recommendations.

• Take all necessary steps to finalize a decision for the acquisition of property for a training location.

• Engage a design consultant to develop detailed plans for the Pimlico site and the training location and launch the permitting process.

• Identify or create a not-for-profit operator for Maryland racing, in consultation with all necessary Maryland officials and industry professionals.

• Maintain Laurel Park as a transitional facility for live racing and training during the expected four-year construction and transition period needed to develop Pimlico as a premier racing hub.