After operating for nearly 70 years, the thoroughbred racetrack Hazel Park Raceway in Hazel Park, Michigan recently closed, leaving Northville Downs, a harness racetrack, the only horseracing facility in the state. About 40 of the 400 thoroughbreds expected for the 2018 racing season already were in the stalls when breeders, owners, trainers, jockeys and the venue’s 90 employees learned the track would close.
As in much of the nation, horseracing has been in decline in Michigan since commercial and tribal casinos opened in the late 1990s and the Michigan Lottery expanded. For years, the state’s horseracing industry unsuccessfully lobbied for more legislative support for slot machines and poker rooms at the tracks, blocked by casinos, social conservatives and others.
In 2004, Hazel Park’s old grandstands were replaced by a new 40,000 square foot grandstand, including a press box and gaming facility, partly in anticipation of video lottery and other casino games coming to Hazel Park Raceway.
The facility opened August 17, 1949, with a thoroughbred meet. The first harness racing meet was held in spring 1953. The track ran both breeds from 1949 to 1984, then became exclusively a harness racing course and switched back to thoroughbred racing in May 2014.
In 1996, the state allowed Hazel Park and other racetracks to offer simulcast betting, including wagering on major international races such as the Triple Crown and the Breeders’ Cup.
Eight Michigan racetracks have closed since 1998.
