Birmingham Race Course

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The Birmingham Race Course (originally the Birmingham Turf Club) is a greyhound track which offers live dog racing and simulcast wagering for greyhound and thoroughbred horse races. It is located on Derby Parkway off John Rogers Drive in eastern Birmingham. It is operated by the Jefferson County Racing Association, headed by Milton McGregor.

History

The project was intended as a showcase for thoroughbred horse racing in the Deep South, drawing crowds from neighboring states for high-stakes parimutuel betting. Legislation making the enterprise possible was pushed through by John Rogers. Investors included Judy Thompson of Thompson Tractor Company, who served as the Turf Club's general manager. Approved in 1985 and backed in part by municipal bonds for infrastructure to the site, the teal-accented clubhouse and other facilities were constructed over the next two years at a cost of $85 million. In addition to video-equipped indoor and outdoor grandstands, the clubhouse featured several lounges and an 800-seat white tablecloth restaurant dubbed "The Ascot". Georgia's Dogwood Stables brought as many as 30 horses to the Club's stables.

The track opened to the public with the Birmingham Inaugural Stakes on March 3, 1987 and held the first Alabama Derby on April 11 of that year. Through 13,000 fans came for the opening event, only 4,500 showed up the following night, and the track never drew the large crowds and large wagers its backers expected, losing up to $100,000 a day in the weeks following. Immediately the track's owners, as well as public officials who supported the project, tried to re-brand the Turf Club as "your course", acknowledging criticism that the track was perceived as elitist. Entry fees were dropped from $2.50 to $1.00 and billboards calling the facility "your track" were erected in less affluent neighborhoods. Nevertheless, by the end of its inaugural 175-day season the track had lost $50 million and the operators filed for bankruptcy reorganization in November 1988.

Owners suggested adding dog-racing to the track, but a referendum to legalize it was defeated. The facility was sold out of bankruptcy to Delaware North, which re-instituted thoroughbred racing a year later. The track re-opened on May 26, 1989 as the Birmingham Race Course and hosted a record crowd of over 15,000 on that Friday night. Crowds and wagers again dwindled. Delaware North packed up in 1991.

Greyhound-racing magnate Milton McGregor bought the track from AmSouth Bank in 1992 and, following a successful referendum, introduced greyhound racing in a smaller infield track. At the start, the track alternated horse and dog races, but eventually abandoned live horse racing altogether. Patrons were still able to place bets on simulcast races from other tracks. The total handle for all racing peaked in 1993 at $163 million and has declined each year since. Continued operations had been subsidized by electronic bingo at the track and at McGregor's other facilities.

McGregor has also pushed for other forms of gambling at the race course. Bills allowing referendums on casino-style gambling have been regularly introduced to no avail. Quincy's MegaSweeps, an "internet café" utilizing custom-built machines from Innovative Sweepstakes Systems, opened in late 2005. The operation was shut down after a few days by the Jefferson County Sheriffs Office. Jefferson County Circuit Court judge Scott Vowell later ruled that the video machines, which only offered an appearance of chance when they notified customers of winning sweepstakes tickets, were in fact legal under loopholes in Alabama law. On appeal, the Alabama Supreme Court overturned Vowell's ruling saying that because customers had to purchase the cards, that the differences in how the game operated were immaterial. The United States Supreme Court declined to review that ruling.

The former internet café and sweepstakes area now operates as "Club Quincy", a nightclub. In 2010 the Birmingham Racing Commission voted 3-1 to allow the track to use funds set aside to benefit horse racing to make improvements to the facility and to suspend contributions of a percentage of the total handle toward a Commission-managed charity fund. The actions were considered necessary in order to preserve the operations of the race course in the wake of the loss of electronic bingo from McGregor's other properties.

See also

References

  • Crist, Steven (March 3, 1987) "New track in Birmingham" New York Times
  • Schmidt, William E. (April 28, 1987) "Birmingham race track off to a slow start." New York Times
  • "Track reopens in Birmingham." New York Times
  • Geiss, Chuck (August 26, 2004) "Naked Birmingham: Publisher's Notebook." Black & White
  • Reeves, Jay (February 18, 2006) "Birmingham 'sham' casino draws crowds, officials' ire." Decatur Daily
  • Hanson, Jeff (September 9, 2010) "Racing Commission approves emergency money for Birmingham Race Course." Birmingham News

External links

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