Oaklawn focused on expansion, success of extended race meet

The Sentinel-Record/Richard Rasmussen EYES ON THE PRIZE: Oaklawn Racing and Gaming opened 2019 strong with a later start date and extended live race meet that ends May 4, Kentucky Derby Day. While enjoying the meet's success thus far, Oaklawn officials are looking forward to and planning for breaking ground on a $100 million expansion scheduled for May 6.
The Sentinel-Record/Richard Rasmussen EYES ON THE PRIZE: Oaklawn Racing and Gaming opened 2019 strong with a later start date and extended live race meet that ends May 4, Kentucky Derby Day. While enjoying the meet's success thus far, Oaklawn officials are looking forward to and planning for breaking ground on a $100 million expansion scheduled for May 6.

With the 2019 live race meet off and running, officials at Oaklawn Racing and Gaming can't help but focus on what's to come at the season's close in May.

Following an extended race meet which began Jan. 25 and will end with Kentucky Derby Day on May 4, Oaklawn will break ground May 6 on a $100 million expansion project which officials said during an announcement in November 2018 has been in the works since about 2014.

The expansion will include an expanded gaming area, a seven-story. 200-room hotel, which has not yet been named, and 14,000-square-foot multipurpose event center. The project is set for completion by the end of 2020.

The expansion is a private investment and involves no public dollars. Half the guest rooms of the new hotel will include one-of-a-kind track views and the multipurpose event center will accommodate up to 1,500 people for concerts, meetings, banquets and weddings. Around 28,000 square feet of gaming space will be added.

Jennifer Hoyt, media relations manager for Oaklawn, told The Sentinel-Record Wednesday that planning is already underway on the expansion and the team is excited for the May 6 groundbreaking.

"We've still got a lot of race meet to get through yet, and a lot to get done before we break ground," she said. "Our hope is, and the goal is -- which we have a lot of experience with this, so we're fairly confident -- to open the 28,000 square feet worth of gaming by the time we open for live racing in 2020. That will be Phase One of the project and Phase Two will be the hotel and the event center."

At the close of the 2018 live meet, Oaklawn announced a later start date and extended live race meet for 2019 which Hoyt said has already proved to be a success in a short amount of time. There is a buzz about Oaklawn, she said.

"I think we can attribute that to a lot of things, one being we have people who want to come here. We definitely have the best model for racing and gaming working together, and I think people know that and want to be here," she said. "This was the biggest opening weekend in at least 10 years.

"I spoke with a women's group yesterday and from what I've seen, a lot of it has been getting farther away from the Christmas holiday so by the time we opened, everyone from the horsemen to the fans were ready to race."

Oaklawn announced Wednesday an increase in all overnight purses, to kick off a five-day race week which started Thursday.

According to a news release, maiden special weights and open allowances were bumped $6,000 to $83,000 and $87,000, respectively. Purses for all claiming races with a claiming price of $16,000 or greater, maiden claiming races with a claiming price of $20,000 or greater and starter allowances increased by $3,000. All other races increased by $2,000 the release said.

"This is our first big weekend of the meet, Presidents Day Weekend, because we've got Dawn at Oaklawn starting back up Saturday and going through at least the Arkansas Derby. On Sunday, we've got our Oaklawn cap giveaway where fans can pick up their official Oaklawn cap for 2019 while supplies last. Then Monday is the first of our major stakes races," Hoyt told The Sentinel-Record.

The Monday card features the $200,000 Bayakoa Stakes for older fillies and mares, the $500,000 Razorback Handicap for older horses and the $500,000 Southwest Stakes, the second of four races in Oaklawn's rich series for 3-year-olds culminating with the $1 million Arkansas Derby, the release said.

"We're off to a fantastic start because the fans have responded to great weather and great racing," President Louis Cella said in the release. "We couldn't be more thrilled with the response we've gotten in support of our new race dates. We opened later and had one of the best opening weekends in 10 years.

"We are mindful of the fact that bigger purses bring in the best horses and human athletes, which in turn brings out the fans. Our goal is to have the richest and most competitive racing product in the country between January and early May."

Following the Arkansas Derby April 13, Hoyt said there will be opportunities for fans to enjoy the nice weather and racing leading up to Kentucky Derby Weekend.

"In the three weeks after the Arkansas Derby, I think one of the main attractions is going to be the infield," she said. "There will be four opportunities left for fans to enjoy the infield. Then that weekend we have three new stakes races to look forward to -- the Oaklawn Mile, Oaklawn Invitational and the Arkansas Breeders' Championship.

"I think because of weather, these additional weeks are really going to be beneficial for the local fans of racing. Unfortunately, for those from out of town, they can't control the weather, but for locals a lot of times they'll say 'I'll just go next weekend.' Sometimes they get to the end of the meet and aren't able to make it to any more races. So, by having it through April, it gives a chance, especially to our locals, to enjoy more live racing. April is some of the best weather in Arkansas."

Local on 02/17/2019

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