After a failed attempt to bring horse racing to the Chair City in 2023, Bay State Racing LLC is trying to do so again, this time at a different location.
After an informational meeting with the City Council on Tuesday, followed by a public hearing, the next step in the horse racing approval process is a City Council vote on whether or not to permit horse racing at the proposed location, 827 Green St.
The city council has the opportunity to vote at their next regular meeting on Monday, Aug. 5. The council also has the authority to postpone the vote or expedite it if a council member motions to change the vote date at the next regular meeting.
How the racing facility will benefit Gardner
Before Mayor Nicholson can sign a Host Community Agreement with Bay State Racing, the City Council has to vote on whether to allow horse racing at the Green Street property and then vote to allow the mayor to negotiate an HCA with Bay State.
The racing company has already submitted a draft of the HCA to the mayor, and items included allowing the community to use the facility on non-racing days for events; if emergency services are called on-site, Bay State will cover the cost of those services. In addition, Bay State will pay for a citywide tree-planting program of 500 trees, and every year they will donate $20,000 to local charities.
Stefanini said if Bay State purchases the property at 827 Green St., they will pay $15,000 in annual property taxes. He said they have agreed to pay $500,000 in additional taxes as part of HCA, which was proposed by the Gardner assistant city solicitor, Vinny Pusateri.
Stefanini said John Flick, the Gardner City solicitor, had a conflict of interest and couldn’t be involved with the HCA negotiations.
Who is Bay State Racing LLC?
After Suffolk Downs at East Boston, Massachusetts’ only thoroughbred horse racing track, closed in 2019, several leading horse racing investors, the New England Horsemen’s Benevolent and Protective Association, and the Massachusetts Thoroughbred Breeders Association came together to try to find a place where they could have a horse racing track again.
After failed attempts to open a horse racing facility in six Massachusetts municipalities, leading investors, with the support of New England HBPA and Mass Breeders Association, established Bay State Racing LLC to propose a facility in Gardner. The following communities rejected horse racing facility proposals in the past five years: Lancaster, Sturbridge, Rowley, Great Barrington, Plymouth, and Hardwick.
John Stefanini, chair of the Bay State Racing Oversight Committee and representative of Bay State Racing, said the two critical investors of Bay State Racing are Sagi Genger and Richard Fields, the former owner of Suffolk Downs. Stefanini said the Mass Gaming Commission requires every licensor to have a Racing Oversight Committee to oversee facility operations and keep the integrity of horse racing.
“Bay State was born out of the desire of horse owners to have a place to be able to race,” he said. “One of the things that are not well understood is how important horse farms are in Massachusetts. There are approximately 350 active horse farms in the state. Those horse farms generate their revenue by bringing their horses to races.”
What is being proposed for Gardner?
The 116 acres at 827 Green St. will become an equestrian center for various horse-related activities, including racing called Bay State Park. Stefanini said the Gardner community will have access to the racing facility as a venue for community events during non-race days.
Stefanini said if the horse racing proposal is approved, Bay State will seek out local businesses to cater and partner with them to service visitors during racing and festival days. He said there will be 200 people staying in the area for four or five days during race days that will do business in Gardner.
“I can see us having a beer garden with the Gardner Ale House, or I could see us doing catering with the Blue Moon Diner or Williams Restaurant,” he said. “Our owners will likely stay at the Colonial, so we’ll work with local businesses to make sure they’re getting a piece of business.”
The proposed facilities
On the west side of the site, a 70-foot wide and a mile-long turf racing track will be built. Stefanini said they will be building a new track instead of using the one already there because a turf surface is much safer for the horses to race on. The two barns and house already on the site will be renovated. He said temporary facilities like porta potties will be brought on-site during festival and race days.
In addition to the racetrack on the west side of the site, a gazebo, food truck pads, a grandstand, and an outdoor amphitheater will be built on the hillside. Stefanini said the area will be a place for people to bring tents, blankets, and lawn chairs and will look similar to the Tanglewood music venue in Lenox.
The proposed horse racing facility plans to have a parking lot with 250 spots and a handful of food truck pads. Stefanini said they also plan to offer a shuttle service that brings visitors off-site to the facility.
What will happen on race days
In one race, six to ten horses are racing, and in one day, there will be up to ten races. He said between five and 25 horses would be in the facility on any given non-race day. There will only be two racing weekends per year. Stefanini said one will be in the spring and the other will be in the fall.
Bay State representatives said racing will occur on the facility only two weekends per year. On race days, Stefanini said one race can have six to 10 horses on the track, and there will be eight to 10 races in one race day. He said on non-race days, there will be five to 25 horses in the facility, either training, breeding, or retraining as part of the retirement program for former race horses.
Source link : https://www.thegardnernews.com/story/news/local/2024/07/30/details-of-the-bay-state-racing-horse-track-proposal-host-community-agreement-additional-taxes/74501037007/
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Publish date : 2024-07-30 09:01:33
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