Maryland’s revamped $400M bet on Pimlico deserves the go-ahead
It may have been a bit slow out of the starting gate, but legislation to upgrade Pimlico Race Course at a cost of $400 million is picking up speed in Annapolis. At a hearing Tuesday, lawmakers debated the price tag and the practicality of a last-minute bill introduced last week in the General Assembly meant to help secure the future of the Preakness Stakes and thoroughbred horseracing in Maryland, and to revive an economically challenged section of Northwest Baltimore.
The rising public cost ($25 million more than previously approved) of the project, along with growing public concern for the welfare of racehorses, are significant obstacles. Yet the reasons to move forward are significant: Hosting the second leg of racing’s Triple Crown is vital for maintaining the health of Maryland’s $2 billion horse racing industry; Pimlico is severely in need of renovation; and reviving the track and offering some ancillary year-round development could help the surrounding communities prosper as well.
Here’s how the proposal would work. The state of Maryland would be Pimlico’s owner while the day-to-day operations would be in the hands of a non-profit entity. The Stronach Group would no longer hold ownership to Pimlico but would continue to own Laurel Park, a site that would ultimately be discontinued as a track (although it would be a temporary home to the Preakness). The renovation of Pimlico would be supervised by the Maryland Stadium Authority, the $400 million price tag to be repaid through slots revenue. Stronach would eventually bow out of running the Preakness as well — but with a licensing fee from its nonprofit successor. The Canadian firm would also likely profit from future development of the Laurel acreage which is no longer set to become a training facility.
The point of all this is, of course, to make sure this new investment is used for the benefit of the broader community and not just private owners. Given the MSA’s track record, most notably managing Oriole Park at Camden Yards and M&T Bank Stadium, it would seem a safe wager to put the matter in their experienced, quasi-public hands. But while it’s one thing to make Pimlico a thrilling
place to be on the third Saturday in May each year (Preakness 149 is May 18), it’s quite another to ensure Park Heights to see a bit of the winner’s circle, too. There have already been some encouraging signs of development, including a new senior apartment comlex on Park Heights Avenue to the construction of a new Enoch Pratt Free Library, the first new branch for the system in more than a decade and a half. Add to that a hotel with event space on the Pimlico site that would be expected to support Sinai Hospital and, slowly but surely, better days are coming.
Those who fret over how little the welfare of Park Heights has been of concern to Pimlico’s ownership for generations can take comfort in this new arrangement, which seems destined to expand community engagement. That doesn’t make the path ahead easy, of course. The closing of Laurel means racing still needs a permanent training facility, and Pimlico is going to have to provide more year-round stables for horses, which means less space for
community-oriented alternatives. But as long as expectations are kept at a reasonable level, the future seems brighter. As any trainer knows, you have to walk before you can trot, and trot before you can run.
If lawmakers approve the bill, and all goes well, Pimlico would close shortly after the annual “Run for the Black-Eyed Susans,” and a rebuilt track could be back in the business of hosting the Preakness Stakes in three years, supported by a new training facility in one of three proposed sites in Aberdeen, Woodbine or Bowie. That would be a welcome event after all of the uncertainty of recent years. But better yet would be for the MSA and the project’s supporters to demonstrate in the months ahead that they can leverage further private investment, work with neighbors and create economic opportunities currently lacking in this part of the city, all while protecting the interests of state taxpayers. Ask anyone who has been to the track: The bigger the stack of winning tickets at the end of the day the better the outcome.