Plymouth Township could get new Northville Downs horse racing facility
Harness racing could be coming to Plymouth Township.
Reps from Northville Downs this week submitted a proposal to make a new procedure in northwest Plymouth Township, just a handful of miles from the existing locale at 7 Mile and Sheldon Street in Northville.
The existing Northville Downs web-site was marketed in 2018 to Hunter Pasteur Houses. The firm is organizing to produce the land with 450 new residences, professional space and parks, but for now, Northville Downs is continuing functions, with stay racing scheduled for April as a result of September of 2023.
The new venture, dubbed Northville Downs at Plymouth Township, is proposed on portion of a 128-acre parcel near the southwest corner of Five Mile and Ridge roads. The place is inside of Michigan Worldwide Technology Corridor (MITC).
According to the submitted plans, the initially phase of the proposed undertaking, if permitted by Plymouth Township, would incorporate building of a fifty percent-mile oval harness racetrack, a two-story, 4,900-sq.-foot grandstand with a big patio for standing space race viewing, a 23,000-square-foot racing creating, a 35,000-sq.-foot horse barn and a 3,200-sq.-foot maintenance building.
An anticipated long term phase of the proposed challenge, pending legislative acceptance, is the building and operation of a 54,000-square-foot gaming facility with additional parking.
The project could occur prior to the Plymouth Township Organizing Fee as before long as February, but an agenda has not but been set. If the job is authorised by the scheduling fee, it will then go in advance of the Plymouth Township Board of Trustees for thought.
Factors for Plymouth Township
A agent from Northville Downs did not straight away return a call in search of comment, but Plymouth Township Supervisor Kurt Heise reported the undertaking was unique and interesting.
“We’re flattered that Northville Downs would think about us as the web page of their new operation,” Heise stated. “We know horseracing is a ton unique in Michigan than it was 100 decades back, and the proposal they’re putting ahead is for a a great deal much more successful procedure than what they at the moment have, simply because the company model has improved.
“It is a extremely environmentally liable web site with as a lot cleanse vitality and eco-friendly technologies as attainable, which is a major leap around what we see suitable now in Northville.”
If the plan moves forward, Heise reported, the township will perform to negotiate a neighborhood reward settlement, which could include things like the potential to keep neighborhood activities these types of as the return of the Fourth of July fireworks exhibit, which was canceled in 2017. Other situations could consist of recreational situations like soccer, car reveals, concert events and other equestrian-sort events.
By condition regulation, Plymouth Township would also be entitled to breakage expenses, the distinction in cents in between the profitable payouts and the nearest dime. For case in point, in accordance to the 2021 Michigan Gaming Management Board Horse Racing Report, if a winning bet is computed to fork out $3.12, then the bettor gets $3.10. The breakage of $.02 is deposited into a fund distributed and used by the towns or townships exactly where the tracks are found.
In 2021, the Town of Northville obtained $214,203 in breakage fees from Northville Downs, according to the report.
If the proposal is accredited, the new facility will be an additional MITC addition to the 5 Mile corridor in between Plymouth Township and Northville. Problems have been raised about road conditions in the spot, and Heise stated MITC is actively lobbying the State of Michigan for funding to rebuild and widen 5 Mile Highway concerning Napier and Beck roads. The venture is expected to price an believed $25 million or much more.
The latest Northville Downs facility gets around 200 cars day-to-day, about 450 automobiles on Friday and Saturday, and upwards of 800 through unique occasions such as Kentucky Derby Day, the proposal says.
Set up in 1944, Northville Downs is the oldest and only remaining nighttime harness racing track in Michigan. The original section of operation for the new facility will include things like daylight only racing. In addition to seasonal stay harness racing, Northville Downs also features 12 months-round simulcast wagering and is the host for specific activities this kind of as the Northville Spring and Summer carnivals.
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Get hold of reporter Laura Colvin at [email protected] or 248-221-8143.