Santa Anita Park race track rejects request from state regulator California Horse Racing Board (CHRB) to cancel its last six days of racing this season, in the wake of two more horse deaths over weekend.
A drainage problem forced the cancellation of horse racing at Santa Anita Park since three inches of rain fell yesterday. The track has had to cancel racing 12 times since the synthetic track was installed two years ago. In 2006, the California Horse Racing Board banned dirt surfaces from thoroughbred tracks. Santa Anita Park has tried two synthetic tracks but the surfaces have not worked out. Officials announced they will replace the synthetic surface before the Oak Tree Meet in the fall.
Santa Anita Park's new Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Mark Verge, 44, a horse owner and entrepreneur, has big plans for the race track. He wants to expand its fan base, partly by reaching out to the local Asian community and to locals who grew up attending the track during the sport's heyday. While Santa Anita Park President George Haines is still running day-to-day operations, Verge will focus on bringing in more people, including celebrities, like actor Vince Vaughn.
Gene Simmons, frontman and singer of rock group KISS, promises to work magic at Santa Anita Park race track, with ideas for using the track for nightclubs, shopping, lifestyle attractions, concerts, and other events.
Frank Stronach, chairman of MI Developments, the owner of Santa Anita Park, says he is optimistic his company can work out a new deal with developer Rick Caruso to build an outdoor mall at Santa Anita Park, even though he voided a 2005 joint-venture agreement with Caruso in April to build the Shops at Santa Anita mall in the race track's parking lot.
Santa Anita Park will be hosting the coveted 2012 Breeders' Cup World Championships. The Stronach Group took full control of the race track from MI Developments at the end of June. The two-day event will generate some revenue for the city and bring a lot of exposure to the San Gabriel Valley.
Magna Entertainment Corp., owner of Santa Anita Park race track, which is in bankruptcy reorganization hearings, filed a plan that would cancel its 2005 agreement with Rick Caruso to develop the 830,000 square feet Shops at Santa Anita on the race track's south parking lot. Caruso filed an objection to the move in bankruptcy court, citing "substantial economic harm" to Santa Anita Associates, LLC, the legal entity that was going to develop the project. Santa Anita LLC has so far invested over $25 million to the project's development. Caruso is committed to developing the project in Arcadia. If the contract is indeed terminated between the parties, Magna would have to start from scratch with new plans, new environmental impact reports, and new hearings to propose another development.
Santa Anita Park is making a bid for the 2012 Breeders' Cup. Former Breeders' Cup CEO Greg Avioli has taken over as Chief Executive Officer of Stronach Entertainment, and now oversees Stronach Group's race tracks and other assets. Avioli's experience brings strength to Santa Anita Park's bid. Santa Anita Park last hosted the Breeders' Cup in 2008 and 2009. The city of Arcadia gets one-third of 1 percent of all monies bet on the track. The event generated nearly $57,000 in betting handle in 2008 and nearly $58,000 in 2009 for the city.
Santa Anita Park race track attendance is on the upswing. It drew 40,810 on Friday, its biggest opening day turnout since 2011. On-track attendance was up 33% over last year, partly because of the free infield admission program, which drew more than 10,000 people. Total wagering, including bets placed from all over the country, rose nearly 30% to more than $17 million. On-site betting was more than $3.4 million. The City of Arcadia gets 1/3 of 1% of all on-site wagering.
At least 300 tons of sand were added to the new all-dirt main track at Santa Anita Park, to correct the imbalance of sand to clay after 14.5 inches of rain fell over a 10-day period.
Breeders' Cup puts on a new face at Santa Anita Park. The 30th Breeders' Cup is horse racing's championship series. Fashion bloggers came out to the big event.
Santa Anita Racing to resume on Friday.
Santa Anita’s scheduled reopening March 29 is back on after the track’s parent company, The Stronach Group, and the Thoroughbred Owners of California reached agreement Saturday on the Lasix controversy that had swept through the industry the past few days.
The story was first reported by Jay Privman of the Daily Racing Form and confirmed by the Southern California News Group.
The deal includes the elimination of Lasix beginning with next year’s crop of 2-year-olds and immediately reduces race-day administration of the diuretic from a maximum of 10 ccs to 5.
Santa Anita Park has live-racing for the first time on the same day as Kentucky Derby. The track will be rooting for Santa Anita Derby winner California Chrome, a California-bred race horse.
Dennis Moore, 67 year old track superintendent since November 2014, helps Santa Anita Park race track shine, horses stay safe. He is currently maintaining the racing surfaces at Santa Anita Park, Los Alamitos, and Del Mar.
Arcadia voters consider extending hotel-room tax in the ballot Measure D. It is meant to close a loophole in a city ordinance on the transient tax. Currently, the city imposes a tax rate of 10% of the rent paid by guests to occupy a room up to 30 consecutive days. If the measure passes by a majority vote, the occupancy tax would be imposed the first 90 days of a stay.
Santa Anita Park's synthetic track surface will be removed and a new $5 million plus dirt surface, closely resembling the ones at Churchill Downs, Gulfstream Park and the Oklahoma training track at Saratoga, will be installed. Ted Malloy is the racing surface consultant. He hopes to have the new track in by December 6.