Deal to Keep Preakness at Rebuilt Pimlico Proposed

A multi-party $199.5-million deal to keep the GI Preakness S. at a rebuilt Pimlico Race Course was reported early Saturday by the Baltimore Sun (full story here).

According to the Sun, the plan still needs “multiple changes to state law” and legislative approval. The key components are:

• Pimlico gets donated to the city of Baltimore by its owner, The Stronach Group (TSG).
• Funded by a Maryland Stadium Authority bond plan, Pimlico gets rebuilt with an entirely new grandstand/clubhouse, and the track surface itself gets rotated 30 degrees to allow for mixed-use development in the surrounding neighborhood.
• Racing and training gets consolidated at Laurel Race Course, which will add a synthetic track alongside the existing dirt and turf courses.
• TSG agrees to a 30-year lease that calls for an annual Pimlico spring meet anchored by the Preakness.

Belinda Stronach, the chairwoman and president of TSG, told the Sun that the agreement contains “transformative plans for the racing industry in Maryland.

But, as the Sun pointed out, “Crucial to the plan is convincing lawmakers to extend the life of a subsidy for the tracks called the Racetrack Facilities Renewal Account. The state's casinos each pay a certain percent of their slot machine profits into the fund, which is used for upgrades at the tracks…. But casinos are only required to pay the money for 16 years after they open. So, the racetrack renewal money will start running out in 2026 and be gone after 2032. For the plan to work, lawmakers would have to change state law to extend the payments from casinos to cover the 30-year payback of the bonds.”

A letter signed by a number of individuals including Baltimore Mayor Bernard “Jack” Young and Stronach and addressed to Maryland Governor Larry Hogan, State Senate President Thomas V. Mike Miller, Jr. and Adrienne Jones, Speaker of the House of Delegates, was made public Saturday morning, as were detailed development plans for both Pimlico and Laurel.