Pimlico Race Course and Laurel Park would be deeded to government entities in Maryland and redeveloped as new racing centers under a plan proffered by the track’s owners, the state’s horsemen, and various government officials, the coalition supporting the plan announced on Saturday. The ambitious plan, hammered out privately by racing and government officials during the past four months, would use casino subsidies authorized under existing state law to back $375 million in bonds to fund the redevelopments, according to documents distributed by the plan’s backers on Saturday. That would require approval of the state legislature, which will not convene until early next year, giving supporters and opponents of the plan time to hash out their arguments over the next few months. Under the proposal, the Maryland racing assets owned by The Stronach Group would be handed over to the state or local entities, and Pimlico – home of the Preakness Stakes – and Laurel would be torn down and replaced with smaller grandstands and new stabling facilities, according to supporters of the plan. For the Preakness, the second leg of the Triple Crown, an array of temporary structures would be erected at Pimlico in order to handle the massive crowds that attend the event, with large portions of the property offered for redevelopment. The Stronach Group would lease the properties in order to run racing meets at the two tracks, according to the plans, with Laurel running the vast majority of the live racing dates in the state and Pimlico being used mainly as the site for a brief racing festival centered on the Preakness. According to officials, live racing schedules would be impacted by the renovations, but the state would attempt to maintain a nearly year-round racing circuit during the construction. The proposal seeks to put an end to longstanding concerns over the fate of the Preakness and Pimlico, a dilapidated racetrack in a disadvantaged community that has been a target of criticism for decades. Earlier this year, the City of Baltimore and The Stronach Group reached an agreement to dismiss a lawsuit filed by the city contesting the company’s plans to relocate the Preakness, a deal that led to the agreement announced on Saturday. The deal was announced with the support of the mayor of Baltimore, Jack Young; the chairman of The Stronach Group, Belinda Stronach; and representatives of the state’s horsemen and various other local government officials. “After months of intensive – and productive – discussions, we are pleased to inform you that we have reached an agreement in principle,” said a letter co-signed by the supporters that was addressed to the state’s governor and legislative leaders. Under Maryland law, the state’s horsemen receive subsidies from casinos operating in Maryland, while The Stronach Group receives grants allowing the company to use casino revenues to fund capital improvements, as long as those funds are matched by the company. The proposal would allow those subsidies to be used to underwrite the bonds, which would have a 30-year maturation. That would require a rewrite of existing state law, which guarantees the subsidies through the end of 2035, well short of the 30-year term of the proposed bond. Because the subsidies are already allocated to the racing industry, supporters of the plan believe that the legislature would support the modification of state law allowing the subsidies to be reallocated to support the bond payments. However, casino companies who already have complained that the grants are too generous would likely mount opposition to the plan, considering the subsidies would be extended another 14 years and tie the state to the operations of the tracks at least through the life of the bonds. “That’s the critical part of this,” said Alan Foreman, a lawyer who has been heavily involved with all racing initiatives in the state for the past 25 years, and who participated in the negotiations. “There’s not state money in this. That’s the appeal.” Foreman said that horsemen would contribute $5 million a year to bond repayments. This year, casino subsidies to purse funds are estimated to total $48 million. The Stronach Group would contribute $8.5 million a year. Under the proposal, Pimlico’s historic grandstand would be demolished and replaced with a smaller structure. The racetrack would be reconfigured in order to allow for development of parts of the property, with the Maryland Stadium Authority, a government agency, overseeing the redevelopment. For most of the year, that property would be used for a variety of purposes other than racing. For Preakness week, many temporary structures akin to those erected at high-profile golf tournaments and at large racing events would provide ticketing options for tens of thousands of spectators. The project would also continue to allow the infield of the track to be used for the large outdoor festival that annually takes place at the Preakness, which, along with the two other Triple Crown races, can generate tens of millions of dollars in revenue in just one day of racing. “These are the types of luxury areas that you see at all of the big-ticket events,” Foreman said, referring to the temporary structures. “Those companies have come a long way in what they can offer. And of course we can keep people coming to the infield. And then for the rest of the year you have all kinds of things you can do with the property.” Laurel Park, which is located halfway between Baltimore and Washington D.C., would also be razed, to be replaced with a redesigned grandstand and the installation of three tracks – a dirt racing surface, an artificial surface, and a turf course. Training would be conducted year-round at the track. Foreman said that tentative plans call for construction to begin first at Laurel Park, with an emphasis on building a new backstretch and the artificial surface for training activities. During that time, horses would be stabled at Pimlico and Timonium, with most racing conducted at Pimlico. After the stabling area is done at Laurel, horses would be moved back to that track while construction is finished on the remainder of the property. Once Laurel is ready, Pimlico would be razed and rebuilt, Foreman said, but the Preakness would always be held at the track. Foreman said that the timetables are merely rough sketches, dependent on legislation and the ability of the new state and local operators to conduct design work, infrastructure improvements, and procurement procedures. Supporters are hopeful construction would begin in 2021. “There will be displacement, but we hope it won’t be longer than a year or 18 months,” Foreman said. "We're dealing with 1,500 horses. This isn't like building a stadium." The proposal would entail the creation of several new government agencies to manage the properties and construction, according to Foreman. Under the proposal, The Stronach Group would receive a license to operate racing at the two tracks, and that license could be awarded to another racing entity should state regulators become dissatisfied with the company’s performance, Foreman said. “We believe we have presented for consideration a truly transformative plan for racing and the many stakeholders and communities of interest who are connected to racing and these facilities,” said Alan Rifkin, a prominent Maryland attorney who represented The Stronach Group in the negotiations. “And we’ve done so within existing sources of funds already available to the industry and [Baltimore] city.” Over the past several years, officials for The Stronach Group have publicly raised the possibility of moving the Preakness to Laurel Park. Those statements have angered Baltimore city officials and some members of the legislature, leading to the lawsuit earlier this year that sought to transfer control of the Preakness to Baltimore. Last year, a report conducted by the Maryland Stadium Authority, in consultation with The Stronach Group, said that Pimlico “had reached the end of its useful life” and estimated that a complete rebuild of the track, along with the development of retail and residential locations on the property, would cost $424 million, with the caveat that the cost was based on a vision of Pimlico commensurate with the status of a Triple Crown track. The new plan would cost $50 million less than that estimate, with both tracks redeveloped. This year, just two weeks prior to the Preakness Stakes, The Stronach Group closed an entire section of Pimlico’s grandstand, claiming that a structural engineering firm hired by the company had deemed that the section was unsafe. The closed section held nearly 7,000 of the 14,000 permanent seats in the grandstand.