The Australian Turf Club will spend A$180-million over the next eight years on upgrades to Sydney's four racetracks, Racing and Sports reports. The ATC also said it will not sell Canterbury, despite speculation otherwise, but that under used parcels of land on its properties could be sold.
“This board is very strong on the view that no racetracks will be sold but we do have land on the fringes of our racetracks that is under-utilised and available for development without affecting racing operations,” ATC Chief Executive Darren Pearce told the site. Of Canterbury, which is adding a A$3-million synthetic track that will be available to horses quarantining there this spring, Pearce added, “Canterbury will be used for much more than just the quarantine periods. As we do work on other tracks, having Canterbury available gives us redundancy.”
“All our tracks are full,” Pearce said. “We have a waiting list of trainers. When Canterbury is not in quarantine it will be great for visitors and as we do trackwork at other venues we can float horses there if needed.”
Randwick is set for a refurbishment of its course proper and its Kensington track, while Warwick Farm will also get a new course proper. Rosehill Gardens will get A$6.5-million in upgrades to its training facilities.
Not a subscriber? Click here to sign up for the daily PDF or alerts.
