Maryland approves Laurel Park purchase, advancing racing facility plans
Maryland approved a $48.5 million Laurel Park purchase, unlocking a 229-acre training plan and more than $50 million in projected savings. The deal also deepens state control over racing’s future.
Maryland’s Board of Public Works approved the $48.5 million purchase of Laurel Park, clearing the way for a statewide thoroughbred training facility on the 229-acre site and putting fresh public money behind the future of racing in Maryland. The July 1 vote was unanimous, even as Treasurer Dereck Davis raised concerns about how large a bet the state was making on horse racing.
The decision gives Gov. Wes Moore’s administration another major piece in its racing overhaul after the state first laid out the Laurel Park plan on April 20. Officials said the switch from the earlier Shamrock Farm proposal would save Maryland more than $50 million, including $26.3 million in construction savings from Laurel Park’s existing stall infrastructure and $22.5 million tied to market-led redevelopment of the Pimlico site. The Maryland Jockey Club also expects about $2.5 million in annual operating savings by consolidating overnight racing staff at the new training center.
For Prince George’s County residents, the stakes run beyond the sale price. Laurel Park has been part of Maryland racing since 1911, and state leaders are now using it as the anchor for a broader strategy that affects land use, jobs, tourism and redevelopment around one of the region’s best-known sports properties. The track has hosted names such as War Admiral and Secretariat, and state officials said the 151st Preakness Stakes was run there on May 16 while Pimlico was rebuilt.
The state also said on June 18 that it intended to exercise its right of first refusal to acquire the Preakness Stakes and Black-Eyed Susan intellectual property for $85 million, a move meant to keep the races under Maryland control. That, combined with the Laurel Park purchase, signaled a push to consolidate racing assets rather than let them drift elsewhere.
Lt. Gov. Aruna Miller said the track would help train the next generation of Triple Crown champions, while Jim Dresher of the Maryland Jockey Club argued Laurel Park is essential to preserving year-round racing in Maryland. The Maryland Stadium Authority said the first upgrades will focus on living quarters for workers and horses on the backstretch, and officials said Preakness is expected to return to Pimlico in 2027.
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