Moves by the Stronach Group will result in increased activity at San Luis Rey Downs, a private training track the company owns in Bonsall, officials said Sunday.
The shift to Bonsall follows Stronach’s decision to close Golden Gate Fields, its horse racing track in the Bay Area, at the end of the 2023 meet.
Transferring its horses to Southern California also will add to the racing calendar at Santa Anita Park in Arcadia.
At this year’s conclusion of the Golden Gate Fields meet, the company will focus on “seamlessly transitioning horses from Northern California to Southern California with the goal of increasing field sizes and adding another day of racing to the weekly racing calendar at Santa Anita Park come January 2024,” according to a company statement.
The consolidation, company officials said, will offer more content opportunities and wagering prospects while serving “to further elevate the overall customer experience at Santa Anita Park.”
Company Chairwoman, CEO and President Belinda Stronach said in a statement Sunday that company officials “believe that the future success of racing depends on a business model that encourages investment in Southern California, one of North America’s premier racing circuits.”
Focusing on Santa Anita Park and San Luis Rey Downs, she explained, “is vital to ensuring that California racing can continue to compete and thrive on a national level.”
“The Stronach Group remains steadfastly committed to racing in California,” she said.
The company will cooperate with industry stakeholders, including the California Horse Racing Board, Thoroughbred Owners of California, California Thoroughbred Trainers, and the Del Mar and Los Alamitos racetracks to develop a plan to relocate horses and employees to Southern California.
“We recognize that the decision will have profound effects on our valued employees as well as the owners, trainers, jockeys and stable personnel at Golden Gate Fields. The Stronach Group is committed to honoring labor obligations and developing a meaningful transition plan,” Stronach said.
Golden Gate Fields has hosted races nine months out of the year, and CHRB Executive Director Scott Chaney said Sunday that he is “acutely aware of the human impact of the closure – be they CHRB employees, CHRB contractors, licensees, and, of course, Golden Gate employees.”
“I think it is fair to say that race-date allocations will take on a new meaning when the Board opens discussions in August for 2024 race dates, Chaney said, adding that he” will be working hard to ameliorate any negative consequences and to create job and role opportunities.”
CHRB Vice Chair Oscar Gonzales also heads the CHRB Race Dates Committee. He said he hopes the upcoming committee meeting on Aug. 16, and the board meeting to follow the next day, both in Del Mar, will “be an opportunity to share more information with the public.”
The Stronach Group purchased Golden Gate Fields, along the San Francisco Bay, in 2011, 70 years after it opened, according to the Associated Press. When it closes, the Bay Area will no longer have a large race track. Bay Meadows shut down in 2008, after 74 years of operation.
– City News Service
