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Horsemen, Management Sign Agreement for Turf Paradise 84-Day Meet Beginning in January

10/29/2020

 
After breaking stride near the finish line, Turf Paradise management and the Arizona Horsemen’s Benevolent and Protective Association (AZHBPA) have finally signed an agreement to host an 84-day live race meet, running from January 4 thru May 1, 2021.
 
An eleventh hour snafu over wording in the Agreement between the two parties caused the 24-hour deadline for submission of agenda items to the Arizona Racing Commission to be missed. The Commission is scheduled to meet in special session tomorrow (Friday, October 30) to approve the race dates, as well to consider contracts for the upcoming Breeders’ Cup simulcasts. The Commission will still meet to approve the contracts. The request for approval of the 84-day meet will now be scheduled for the regularly scheduled monthly meeting of the Commission on November 12.
 
“Many thanks to Arizona Racing Director Rudy Casillas for hosting the forum for dialogue between the two parties,” said Turf’s general manager Vincent Francia. “An equal amount of thanks to AZHBPA President Bob Hutton and track owner Jerry Simms for committing to dialogue until everything was resolved. Now, it’s time to race.”
 
The 84-day meet will be conducted on a 5-day a week schedule, Monday thru Friday with post time set for 12:30 pm. The lone exception to the schedule is Kentucky Derby Day, Saturday, May 1.
 
Horsemen will arrive Nov. 19 to prepare their stalls; horses will arrive Nov. 25. The first condition book and stakes schedule are published at www.turfparadise.com.
 
“There’s a lot to do in a short time,” said Francia. “But we’ll be ready.”
 

Estimated $4 Million in Purses for Upcoming Meet at Turf Paradise

10/23/2020

 
​Race Days Change to Monday thru Friday
 
An estimated $4 million in purse money will be available when Turf Paradise opens its 84-day live meet, running from January 4 thru May 1, 2021.
 
Racing will be conducted on a 5-day a week basis, Monday thru Friday (a change from the original schedule of Saturday thru Wednesday). Kentucky Derby Day Saturday, May 1, will be the lone exception.
 
“Our numbers revealed a simple truth: we handle more on the weekdays than on the weekends, especially wagering coming from our out of state markets,” said track general manager Vincent Francia. “Better handle equals more purse money for the horsemen.”
 
The Phoenix-based track has been dark since having to curtail its live meet in progress on March 14 due to the Coronavirus. But simulcasting at the track and at Turf’s OTB system continued, accruing $2.1 million from March 14 to September 3. An additional $1.9 million is projected to be generated from then until Dec. 31, for a total of $4 million.
 
The $4 million serves as seed money to start the meet. In addition nearly $50,000 is generated daily for purses for each of the 84 live race days.
 
“The whole purpose of the January to May meet is to get money to the horsemen, to help them get back on their feet after the March cancellation,” said Francia. “Fans are welcome in limited number because of the Coronavirus. But the meet is really for the horsemen.”
 
The first floor of the Grandstand and outside on the track apron will be open for wagering. The Clubhouse and Turf Club will be closed.
 
Daily purses will range from $80,000 to $100,000.
 
“Because of the increased purse money we’re expecting to have plenty of horses,” said racing secretary Robbie Junk. “Bottom maiden claimers will race for $8,000 as compared to $6,300. Open allowance will be up to $23,500 from $19,000. And bottom $3,000 claimers will be racing from $9,000 instead of $7,000. “
 
Details are still being worked out with the Arizona Thoroughbred Breeders for their purses.
 
“What we know so far with the breed races is that they will be 5 to 10% higher than the open races,” said Junk. “I’m still working through the details with Marv Fleming (President, Az Thoroughbred Breeders).”   
 

Horsemen, Management Agree to Resume Live Racing at Turf Paradise Beginning January

10/16/2020

 
Turf Paradise and the Arizona Horsemen’s Benevolent and Protective Association (AZHBPA) have agreed to resume live racing at the Phoenix-based oval with an 84-day meeting running from January 2 thru May 1, 2021.
 
The meet would run on a five-day a week schedule, Saturday thru Wednesday. Horsemen can arrive Nov. 19 for stall preparations and then bring horses into the stable area Nov. 25. Training would begin Dec. 2.
 
Following months of negotiations between the AZHBPA and Turf management following a March 14 cancellation of the live meet in progress due to the Coronavirus, the two sides were able to craft a 26-point agreement. The forum for on-going discussions between the two sides was provided by Rudy Casillas, the Director for the Division of Racing, the state’s regulatory body for the sport.
 
In a letter penned by Casillas and addressed to Bob Hutton, President of the AZHBPA and Jerry Simms, the owner of Turf Paradise, he said, “Many thanks to both of you for finally reaching terms to allow for the racing industry to move forward. The Licensees and horseracing patrons will be pleased.”
 
“The AZHBPA is all about live racing,” said Hutton. “The AZHBPA is enthusiastic to help provide the opportunity for horsemen to race close to home and be with their families. Racing close to home will help eliminate unnecessary travel expenses and financial anxiety for our members.”
 
“We’re happy for our horsemen that they’re going to be racing,” said Simms. “Unfortunately we still have to deal with Covid-19, and we will. We thank Rudy Casillas for bringing us together and getting this done.”

Turf Paradise 2021 Winter/Spring Meet Edges Closer to Reality

10/9/2020

 
https://www.thoroughbreddailynews.com/turf-paradise-2021-winter-spring-meet-edges-closer-to-reality/

By T. D. Thornton

With both Turf Paradise and Arizona Horsemen’s Benevolent and Protective Association (AZHBPA) representatives telling the Arizona Racing Commission (AZRC) Thursday that they are now close to agreeing on a contract for an 84-date, Jan. 2-May 1 race meet, AZRC chairman Rory Goree indicated that the commission stands ready to approve the dates request, which has already been submitted to the board but was not placed on the agenda for a vote at the Oct. 8 video meeting.
Approval could come via a special AZRC session that might get scheduled before the next monthly commission meeting Nov. 12.
“The primary question is ‘Can we be ready?'” Turf Paradise general manager Vincent Francia asked rhetorically during his presentation before the commissioners. “Yes. I know exactly what has to be done, and I have the staff here to get it done before the horses get here on Dec. 2.”

Leroy Gessmann, who serves as both the AZHBPA executive director and the National HBPA president, also expressed optimism. “We’re hoping soon some things will be resolved,” he said. “Hopefully we’re close, and we get this wrapped up soon.” Goree said he was well aware that Turf Paradise management wanted the 2021 winter/spring dates request to be voted on during Thursday’s meeting, but he explained commissioners didn’t want to be put in a position of voting on any race meet until a contract has been inked.

“Yes, I did see the dates come before us to be put on the agenda,” Goree said. “[But] we don’t want them on the agenda until we know we have an agreement between [Turf Paradise] and the HBPA. Then that way we know we’re approving something that everyone’s finally in agreement on,” Added Francia: “It will come as no surprise I’d like to request a special session as soon as possible once those dates are ready to go before the commission, because I’m running out of time. It’s not on my side right now.”

The newfound spirit of cooperation between the AZHBPA and Turf Paradise stands in sharp contrast to the acrimony-tinged AZRC meeting on Sept. 10, at which members of the state’s racing community railed at Turf Paradise management and desperately implored the AZRC to take some form of action so that live racing can get back up and running in Arizona-even if that meant transferring Turf Paradise’s customary block of dates to competitor Arizona Downs.

Turf Paradise ended its spring meet prematurely Mar. 14 as the COVID-19 pandemic swept the nation. In August, Turf Paradise withdrew its dates request for a traditional 2020-21 autumn-to-spring meet, citing liability concerns related to COVID-19. In between, the Arizona Downs summer meet never ran because local health officials would not extend permission to reopen under pandemic conditions.

Beyond the pandemic, a prolonged fight over off-track betting (OTB) privileges, simulcast signals, and how the horsemen’s purse money can be used has been batted back and forth in the courts, in the press, and during commission meetings, clouding the future of the state’s two commercial tracks.
Francia said Turf Paradise would have a two-phase approach to getting the idle plant ready for reopening. The barn area, frontside, main dirt track, and turf course all need to be put back in order. Simultaneously, all of those common areas need to be refurbished with COVID-19 safeguards in place, like those at every other track in the nation that has resumed racing during the pandemic.

One bone of AZHBPA contention that has consistently come up since Turf Paradise shut down seven months ago is that track management has allegedly sold off equipment that is essential to operating a race meet. Goree asked Francia directly what impact that might have on safely operating the facility.

“No impact whatsoever,” Francia said, although he did not detail what actually has been sold. “That equipment has nothing to do with the essential [things needed] to run a race meet. Francia then listed examples-tractors, harrows, water trucks, ambulances-of equipment that remains “on-site here at Turf. None of the essential equipment has been sold.”

Francia continued, focusing on the negotiations: “We are very close to working out all terms of agreement. We will probably continue our discussions after this commission meeting to try to finalize the last few minor things that are sticking points. But we’ve made a lot of progress, and I’m quite confident that we’re going to get this completed.”

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