Sandown Park Closing For Good

Published: May 10, 2010 09:21 pm EDT

According to a story from C-Fax 1070, Sandown Park in British Columbia will be closing its doors for good

.

Howard Blank, a spokesperson for the track’s operator, Great Canadian Gaming, confirmed there will be no living racing dates at Sandown this summer. An official closing date has yet to be determined.

"They [Great Canadian Gaming] were leasing the property as you know, and I think we would,” said Mayor Alice Finnal. “We're hoping to meet at some point in the near future with the owner, to see what prospects or proposals they may have for that property".

Sandown Park hasn’t featured live racing since 2008, but it has offered simulcast wagering from other tracks.

(With files from C-Fax 1070)

Related story:
No Racing At Sandown In 2009

Tags

Comments

You are just so right on Oliver. As a 30 year owner, the big business way of doing things finally made me hang up my gloves.

A sad announcement for sure if it is true. Sandown was a summertime joy. Bringing your kids, a blanket, a picnic, and sitting on the grass under a warm summer sun to see the horses in such close proximity to your spot at the fence provided spectators with a true horse racing experience. Fraser Downs has no such feeling. Horse racing has turned into a factory business with very little connection to the fans because of things like teletheatre simulcasting. The experience of going to the track has been replaced by sitting in your home and turning on a television and calling in a bet. Sandown brought you to the track. It brought you to within inches of the action. This move is one more nail in the coffin for horse racing by ill-informed operators who care not for the sport but for their bottom line. Jim Keeling Sr. was a pioneer in B.C. harness racing who was committed to Sandown. He would be sad by its demise today. As am I.

Another loss to BC racing. Sandown came so close to having a future, as slots were approved, and then to lose it all. Hopefully another gameing company will decide to step up and see if N Saanich will approve slots again.

Have something to say about this? Log in or create an account to post a comment.