Pimlico would be renovated into a multiuse facility that would be used mostly for youth sports and festivalsGETTY IMAGES
Maryland lawmakers are "considering an ambitious" $389M plan to “renovate Pimlico Race Course and Laurel Park,” according to a front-page piece by Pamela Wood of the BALTIMORE SUN. Laurel would be “renovated first, and would continue to be the focus of year-round thoroughbred horse racing in Maryland.” It would get “new track surfaces, a new clubhouse, improved stables and better housing for track workers.” While Laurel is renovated from ‘21-23, all racing "would be held at Pimlico.” Then, Pimlico “would get an overhaul” in ‘23 and ‘24. Pimlico would be “renovated into a multiuse facility that would be used most of the year for youth sports events, festivals and the like.” Each spring, the Maryland Jockey Club would use Pimlico to “run a short racing meet with the Preakness Stakes as the centerpiece.” The Maryland Jockey Club would “build temporary seating and tents each year to accommodate the large Preakness crowd.” The first Preakness at the rebuilt Pimlico "would be held” in May ‘24. The Stronach Group, which owns the jockey club and the tracks, would “give up ownership of Pimlico by turning it over to Baltimore City or an entity designated by the city.” For Laurel, Stronach would “enter into a ground-lease arrangement with Anne Arundel County or a county-designated entity that would run for at least 30 years.” The company would have the “option of regaining full ownership of the property at the end of the ground lease" (BALTIMORE SUN, 2/26).
