Thoroughbred racing won’t return to New England in 2023 after the citizens of Hardwick, Mass., overwhelmingly defeated a ballot initiative that would allow the construction of a new racetrack, blanket center horses and nursing homes in a special townwide election on January 7.
After the polls closed on Saturday night, a total of 828 out of 311 were against a proposal by the Commonwealth Horse and Agriculture Center to develop a new track on a 360-acre farm in the center of the country. Massachusetts town center.
“The results are very disappointing. It’s heartbreaking for the riders,” said Paul Umbrello, executive director of the New England branch of the Knights Protection and Mercy Association.
The defeat is the latest in a string of nearly a dozen proposals for a new racetrack in various Massachusetts localities that have not materialized since 2014 when Suffolk Downs in Boston announced it would not resume races. Full face-to-face meeting. Between 2015 and 2019, racetrack owner Sterling Suffolk, sold the property to a major real estate developer in 2017 but retained and leased the live broadcast and racing licenses , offers small races that meet six to eight days per year.
“We’re disappointed, but we’re not giving up. We’re not giving up. We’re not done from the cavalry side.” Umbrello said, who has spearheaded initiatives to restore live races and revitalize the Massachusetts livestock industry. “I’ll take a day off on Sunday, then go back to work on Monday morning. We’ll start calling more, chatting more, and see where we are.”
Umbrello said after the results that he did not have the opportunity to discuss the situation with Richard Fields, head of the Commonwealth Equine Agricultural Center and has a contingent land purchase agreement, which expires next month. Fields is a partner in Sterling Suffolk Racecourse.
Meanwhile, NEHBPA is working to put in place a Plan B.
“We have a number of other options that we will look at and consider,” Umbrello said.
Over the past few months, the Riders and their supporters have invested a considerable amount of time and effort in trying to win the hearts and minds of the townspeople of Hardwick since the Selection Council decided to do so. decided by a 2–1 vote on 21 November to allow the people to have the final say on the matter.
Under the host city agreement proposed by CEAC, the rural community would receive a minimum of $500,000 annually to the town’s coffers from the new track operations. Racetracks, breeding centers and racehorse retirement homes will also create full- and part-time jobs as well as preserve open green spaces in the state.
“The message coming from the opposition continues to be misinformation and I think that scares people. We’ve tried to explain our point of view, so this is disappointing,” Umbrello said. . “Now it’s back to the drawing board.”
Saturday night’s vote ended the time-honored saga that has raged over the past three months on whether to allow the development of the track, which should have hosted a lengthy all-court race. two days in September as the first step in restoring live racing in New England. Hardwick’s Selection Board first voted unanimously to cancel plans to build the track on the 360-acre Meadowbrook Ranch but later approved it. Due to strong sentiment and signed petitions by both sides on the matter, the council subsequently called for a special election.
