Maryland Step Closer on Pimlico-Centered Racing Plan

Maryland's House of Delegates approved legislation on the night of April 8 that will remake Maryland racing around Pimlico Race Course.

HB 1524, the legislation to set the wheels in motion for the "Pimlico Plus" plan, passed the House Monday evening by a vote of 105-32.

The House action, coupled with an earlier 41-6 vote in the Senate, represents final legislative action on the bill and moves it to the desk of Democratic Gov. Wes Moore. Since Moore has been an advocate of the bill, he is expected to sign it.

The overall bill, coupled with a series of agreements its passage is expected to trigger, will remake Maryland racing. It will lead to the eventual closure of Laurel Park, the revitalization of Pimlico Race Course, and the acquisition of land for and building of a training center. It also will end Maryland's tradition of private, for-profit ownership of racetracks; replacing that with a state-owned, nonprofit-managed model.

The legislation authorizes the Maryland Stadium Authority to issue up to $400 million in bonds to support the project.

The bill will put into place a plan developed by the Maryland Thoroughbred Racetrack Operating Authority, which the General Assembly created last year to determine the best course for Maryland racing's future. And it will trigger several agreements the Authority says it has hammered out with The Stronach Group, which owns The Maryland Jockey Club, which operates Laurel Park and Pimlico.

Angst: Maryland Plan Seeks to Take Full Advantage of Preakness

Those will include the transfer of Pimlico to the state for a nominal price of one dollar and an agreement that will see the MTROA paying the Stronach Group millions of dollars annually for the right to run the Preakness Stakes (G1).

The passage of the legislation followed—as is, to some extent, tradition—a frantic sprint to the finish line. The legislation had easily passed the House April 1, but a hearing in the Senate's Budget and Taxation Committee April 5 made clear that many Senators were troubled by aspects of the bill.

Senators, the Governor's representatives, and MTROA members worked through the weekend to craft a series of amendments that didn't exactly make Senators happy—"a leap of faith," one Senator termed voting for it—but made them willing to vote in favor.

Senate President Bill Ferguson, a Democrat representing Baltimore City, called the bill a "hot potato" as the Senate approved it, and hours later, the House followed suit.

Plans call for the Preakness to be conducted at Laurel in 2026 as the new Pimlico is built, with the classic returning to Baltimore in 2027. The Stronach Group would then become the owner of the Laurel property, and that track would be closed for redevelopment.

Frank Vespe writes for The Racing Biz. For more Mid-Atlantic racing coverage, visit theracingbiz.com.