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A legislative panel is delaying the proposed purchase of Laurel Park by the Maryland Stadium Authority, asking for a cost-benefit review of the $48.5 million deal that was announced suddenly just over two weeks ago.
The Legislative Policy Committee, in a May 4 letter to the authority, also imposed a 45-day delay while it reviews the proposed purchase of the track, which is supposed to be transformed into a state-of-the-art training facility.
The pause will not affect the May 16 running of the 151st Preakness Stakes, which is being run at Laurel Park while the race鈥檚 traditional home, Pimlico in Baltimore, is being razed and rebuilt.
But the聽, made up of House and Senate leaders, want to take a closer look at the long-term plans for Laurel Park 鈥渢o get a full accounting of the dollars that have gone out and plan for the dollars ahead,鈥� Senate President Bill Ferguson (D-Baltimore City) said Wednesday.
鈥淎s budgets get tighter, every dollar has to be scrutinized even further. And so I think the legislature has an interest in really understanding the full game plan of where we are headed to make sure that we鈥檙e getting the best value for public investment,鈥� Ferguson told Maryland Matters after a campaign event in Baltimore.
The authority announced two weeks ago that it reached a $48.5 million deal to buy the facility from 1/ST Maryland LLC. Officials framed it as a deal that would save the state $50 million over the costs of converting a Carroll County farm into the state鈥檚 training facility.
After buying Shamrock Farms for $4.5 million in August, it was determined that the cost of turning the 328-acre property into the training center the state wanted would be excessive and environmentally problematic.
Ferguson said that the recommendation to buy Shamrock Farms 鈥渃ame to us after what we believed was sufficient, due diligence, clearly was not sufficient, and what happened in that purchase was not just a mistake 鈥� it feels like it sent the state backwards. I think there are a lot of concerns and questions about the purchase overall.鈥�
Ferguson said in hindsight he wishes the state had not purchased Shamrock Farms.
鈥淣ow we have to figure out what we can do to mitigate the damage of it,鈥� he said. 鈥淐an the state afford the purchase of a second property to mitigate the issues with Shamrock, because it鈥檚 not usable.鈥�
The deals are the latest twist in the state鈥檚 ongoing efforts to preserve a horseracing industry in Maryland, which supporters like聽Gov. Wes Moore (D) claim provides nearly 30,000 jobs and $3 billion in economic activity for the state.
Even so, racing has struggled for decades in Maryland. The decaying Pimlico Race Course, home of the second leg of racing鈥檚 Triple Crown, became a symbol of the industry鈥檚 decline.
鈥淚t just seems like other than the Preakness, it just doesn鈥檛 seem to have the support, you know, from the public at large, to survive,鈥� state Treasurer Dereck Davis (D) said Wednesday. 鈥淏ut this isn鈥檛 football and this isn鈥檛 baseball or basketball. Those are really, whether we want to admit it or not, those are the pasttimes in America and here in Maryland.鈥�
In 2024, lawmakers passed legislation meant to give another 鈥� perhaps final 鈥� chance to horse racing with the so-called Pimlico Plus Plan, which consolidated thoroughbred racing in the state. Tracks owned by the Stronach Family and 1/ST would close, with the exception of Pimlico, effectively making the state government the operator of thoroughbred racing in Maryland.
鈥淚 think there are generalized concerns about the long-term stability of the industry,鈥� said Ferguson, adding that the state has been in the business 鈥渇or decades. 鈥� I think that鈥檚 been a challenge that we keep navigating over and over again.鈥�
The 2024 plan called for Pimlico to be razed and replaced by a modern facility overseen by a state-created Maryland Thoroughbred Race Track Operating Authority, which would also oversee planned enhancements for the surrounding Park Heights community.
The state would finance the purchase of a property to create a state-of-the-art training facility. When all was said and done, there would be 120 racing days at Pimlico.
Within a year of passing the Pimlico Plus legislation, cracks in the plan began to show. The legislature decommissioned the race track authority and divided its work between the stadium authority, to oversee construction of a new Pimlico and the training facility, and the Maryland Economic Development Corp., to oversee economic development around the track, including a possible hotel and parking garage.
The agreement also included an 鈥渆xclusive and perpetual license鈥� to the state for rights to the Preakness for an initial 10 years, starting this July. The deal automatically extends in five-year increments unless terminated by the state. Under that deal, the state agreed to pay 1/ST a $3 million base fee that increases by 2% annually, as well as 2% of the handle from races.
The Stronach Family and 1/ST agreed under the deal to put the Woodlawn Vase trophy, awarded to the winner of the Preakness, on permanent loan to the state. The vase, valued at an estimated $7 million, is considered one of the most valuable in sports.
But two weeks ago, 1/ST announced an $85 million deal with Churchill Downs, home of the Kentucky Derby, for the intellectual property rights to the Preakness and Black-eyed Susan stakes and all associated trademarks and memorabilia. The agreement remains subject to the state鈥檚 earlier licensing deal.
The legislators鈥� letter is focused on the sudden shift from Shamrock Farms to Laurel Park for a training facility, a proposal taht 鈥渋s less expensive maybe intuitively appealing, [but] no estimates or timelines have been provided.鈥�
鈥淎lthough MSA [the stadium authority] asserts that Laurel Park is a more suitable project, not much is known about the costs associated with construction of a facility at Shamrock Farm or Laurel Park,鈥� said the two-page letter, a copy of which was obtained by Maryland Matters. 鈥淢SA has not provided detailed cost estimates for construction or environmental mitigation at either location. MSA has also not disclosed its plan for Shamrock Farm if Laurel Park is purchased.鈥�
Stadium authority officials pledged at the time to 鈥渆ngage in collaborative conversations鈥� with Carroll County government officials on possible future uses for Shamrock Farms. But no details were provided.
A stadium authority spokesperson was not immediately available for comment Wednesday.
The existence of the lawmakers鈥� letter became public during a discussion at Wednesday鈥檚 Board of Public Works meeting of a聽聽for outdoor LED boards, food service and laundry equipment for the Pimlico. Davis, a member of the board, said that 鈥渁t some point 鈥e have to get it [the horseracing industry] to sink or swim.鈥�
鈥淐an it survive? We can鈥檛 keep pouring massive amounts of dollars into this industry for the third weekend in May,鈥� he said. 鈥淎nd I know, I know the conversations about year-round, but that鈥檚 not really working, which is why we鈥檙e here.鈥�
The contract is the seventh since October 2024 to come before the board, which has approved nearly $184 million for the project.
Davis said the continued expense of underwriting the flagging horseracing industry will take resources from other areas.
鈥淲hat are we forgoing in terms of the difference we can make in our communities?鈥� he asked. 鈥淭hese kinds of dollars will make a difference 鈥� and a lasting difference.鈥�
Davis supported the measure but his comments underlined a growing frustration held by some over the continued costs.
鈥淚f you have to come back here in another year or two, or whatever, with another proposal or another way to bring it along 鈥� I think we鈥檙e going to have to have a serious conversation about what we鈥檙e doing,鈥� Davis said. 鈥淚s this the right approach or is this a commitment we want to keep on making, despite the fact that maybe we already know what the outcome is going to be.鈥�
– Maryland Matters reporter Christine Condon contributed to this story.
