After being closed for three years for renovations, the new Turfway Park Racing & Gaming racino debuted on September 1 in Florence, Kentucky, on the site of the original Turfway Park.
Owner Churchill Downs, which purchased the facility from JACK Ohio LLC and Hard Rock International for $46 million in 2019, invested $240 million in the new venue. The property features more than 800 historical horse racing machines, live Thoroughbred racing, two dining options and an event center. The facility created more than 400 new jobs.
When live racing resumes November 30, fans will notice several upgrades. The track’s Polytrack surface was replaced in March 2020 with a new $8.1 million Tapeta synthetic track. Turfway Park officials said that it’s one of the world’s leading racing and training surfaces. Churchill Downs also will invest $31 million in enhancements to track workers’ dormitories, five new horse barns and new stormwater collection systems.
Dining options at Turfway include Serena’s Market, named for the legendary filly Serena’s Song, which will offer a grab-and-go menu. Churchill’s Bourbon and Brew is a sit-down restaurant offering a full menu plus bourbon, beer, wine and cocktails. The venue offers live music on weekends.
At the grand opening, Governor Andy Beshear, who took part in the venue’s groundbreaking in March 2021, said Turfway Park was a “first class facility.” He said legalizing sports betting should be the next step in Kentucky gambling. “I’m 100 percent for sports betting. I pushed it every year I’ve been governor and as I was attorney general. We need a few people in the general assembly to come around. There are a whole lot of them here tonight. Hopefully, they like what they see,” he said.
Beshear said he’s been frustrated over the lack of wagering options for Kentuckians. In the past in Northern Kentucky, taxpayers have had to visit casinos in surrounding states. “But with a facility like Turfway Park, we can compete with everyone. The general assembly has failed to pass sports betting, failed to pass full gaming. We’re behind the rest of the country on those things. It’s time to catch up,” he said.
Florence Mayor Diane Whalen was one of the first to wager on a historical horse racing machine at the grand opening. She said, “It’s like Dorothy walking over the hill to the Land of Oz with all of the bright lights, the newness of the place, the excitement we know it’ll bring to the city.”
