The Maryland Thoroughbred Racetrack Operating Authority (MTROA) held a meeting July 15 at which the centerpiece was discussions of celebrations that will take place around the 2025 Preakness Stakes – an event which the MTROA will not control until 2027.

“A little bit quirky,” MTROA chairman Greg Cross admitted of the arrangement.

The quirk is in the timeline.

As of July 1, “We are now the proud owners of the Pimlico site,” Cross said. That’s when the major agreements and land transfer closed.

By January 1, the MTROA, via its nonprofit designee, will control day-to-day racing in Maryland, which will be conducted at Laurel Park.

But the Preakness? That’s a different beast; that will remain an event managed by the Stronach Group through its 1/ST Racing operation for 2025 and 2026. The 2025 Preakness – the 150^th running of Maryland’s most significant race – will take place at Pimlico, while the ’26 running of the Middle Jewel is expected to be run at Laurel Park. Thereafter, it is expected that the race will return to Old Hilltop permanently.

Even after that, the Stronach Group will retain ownership of the intellectual property that comprises the Preakness – names, trademarks, and the like – which the MTROA will lease for use at an anticipated cost of more than $5 million annually.

But even though the MTROA will play no real role in Preakness weekend operations this year – that’ll be the province of the Stronach Group – it hopes to begin work now to increase the race’s profile in the community and as a community celebration and not just a horse race.

To that end the MTROA is working with a government-created nonprofit called the Sport and Entertainment Corporation of Maryland, which seeks to move “Maryland forward through sports,” according to its website. Among the events with which it is involved: the Maryland 5 Star equine eventing competition contested at Fair Hill.

“In concert with the MTROA, we are developing a public-private partnership group and leadership committee to host and deliver celebratory activities, i.e. concerts, fireworks, drone shows, balloon glows, etc. leading up to and around the 150th running of the Preakness Stakes at Pimlico,” SportCorp president Terry Hasseltine told the MTROA. “The long-term effort behind this initiative is to establish a sustainable model similar to the Derby Festival so that Baltimoreans and Marylanders and our visitors can participate, witness, and enjoy activities each year in celebration of the history, the longevity and the culture derived around the Preakness on an annual basis.”

The anchor event, Hasseltine said, will be “a primetime concert,” though he could not provide further details. He added that his group hopes to “re-engage” and “rekindle” some other events that over the years have happened around the Preakness.

The goal: “to create basically a week-esque celebration leading into Preakness 150,” he added.”

Additional details, including potential budgets and other events, are few at the moment.

“The full development rollout will come back to us in probably 60 days,” Cross said.

Cross also provided an update on the Maryland Stadium Authority’s work to bring in the team to oversee the design and eventually build of the new Pimlico. That team will include the design firm Ayers Saint Gross and the architectural firm Populous.

Additionally, the MTROA has retained Canopy Team, which bills itself “a multi-disciplinary practice that serves as an expansion of your team for all aspects of the built environment.” Canopy Team will serve as the owners’ representatives in the Pimlico project. Among its past projects are design-build work and subsequent improvements to Oriole Park at Camden Yards, the Baltimore Orioles’ highly regarded home stadium.

The Maryland Stadium Authority is currently working to retain a construction manager for the project.

Cross did not provide an update on the choice of a training center site. The Aberdeen location, sources have told The Racing Biz, appears to be the frontrunner.

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