Pugh's lawsuit asks the court to grant ownership of the racetrack and the race to the city of BaltimoreGETTY IMAGES
Baltimore Mayor Catherine Pugh "sued the owners of Pimlico Race Course," the Stronach Group, in "hopes of blocking them from moving the Preakness Stakes or using state bonds to fund improvements at Laurel Park," according to Pamela Wood of the BALTIMORE SUN. The lawsuit filed yesterday also "asks the court to grant ownership of the racetrack and the race to the city through condemnation." A Maryland law passed in '87 "requires that the Preakness ... can be moved from Pimlico 'only as a result of a disaster or emergency.'" The lawsuit claims that the Stronach Group is "openly planning to violate Maryland law by moving the Preakness to a different racetrack despite the absence of any disaster or emergency, except for the disaster that they are in the process of creating." Stronach Group officials "previously pledged to keep the Preakness at Pimlico" through '20. But they also have "made clear that they plan to invest in Laurel Park in Anne Arundel County, in hopes of building a 'super track' that could attract a high-profile race such as the Breeders' Cup." To accomplish that, Stronach Group is "backing legislation in the General Assembly that would allow" the Maryland Economic Development Corp. to issue $80M worth of bonds to "pay for improvements at Laurel" and an additional $40M in bonds for its Bowie Training Center (BALTIMORE SUN, 3/20).
MOVING PARTS: In Baltimore, Holden Wilen wrote the future of Pimlico "remains cloudy" after Maryland lawmakers "failed to move forward on bills affecting the racetrack ahead of the General Assembly's 'crossover' milestone." A bill being pushed to "study financing options for a potential rebuild of Pimlico still has not gotten a committee vote." A bill sponsored on behalf of the Stronach Group to "allow the company to use state bond money to turn Laurel Park into a 'super track' also remains stuck in committee." Monday night was the deadline for the Senate and House to "send bills they intend to pass favorably to the opposite chamber." But now they will "need to go through extra legislative steps with the support of General Assembly leadership" (BIZJOURNALS.com, 3/19).
