Particle.news
Download on the App Store
6 ARTICLES
·
3w ago

Maryland Reaches Tentative Deal to Buy Laurel Park, Converting It Into Statewide Training Hub

The move replaces the scrapped Shamrock Farm plan judged too costly.

Image
Entrance to Shamrock Farm, off Woodbine Road, that is slated to be a horse training facility in Carroll County. The plan is to train and house hundreds of horses and become the new Maryland Stadium Authority Training Center. The property is 640 acres with a stallion barn, attached breeding shed, foaling barn, barren mare/sales/lay-up barn with an exerciser, yearling barn, and numerous run-in sheds in lush green pastures.
The starting gate rests on the dirt course as track personnel ready it for a turf race at Laurel Park on Nov. 20, 2021.
Image

Overview

  • State officials said the Maryland Stadium Authority has a preliminary agreement with The Stronach Group to acquire Laurel Park and repurpose it as the consolidated training center, pending final approvals and closing.
  • Financial terms were not disclosed; reporting places the proposed purchase price near $50 million, with officials citing roughly $50 million in overall savings from the realigned plan.
  • Pimlico will adopt a ship-in model under the redevelopment, with the 151st Preakness scheduled at Laurel Park on May 16, 2026, before racing returns to a rebuilt Pimlico in spring 2027 for about 120 days annually.
  • Projected savings include $26.3 million by avoiding new stalls at Pimlico and $22.5 million by scaling back a large event space, with the Maryland Jockey Club also estimating about $2.5 million in annual operating savings.
  • The Maryland Jockey Club will continue day-to-day operations at Laurel under state ownership, acquisition costs will be covered with available project funds with potential MEDCO revenue bonds to offset expenses, and a task force will decide Shamrock Farm’s future after it was deemed not viable.