Fairgrounds to be sold to City of Del Mar?

[Igeteven]

It's posted all over the place, yes they are in debt, so, what is the big deal about that.

Most Corporations keep in debt to avoid a hostile take over.

[Bob B]

Most Corporations keep in debt to avoid a hostile take over.

Believe me, on this, you should be teaching corporate finance classes at a major university with knowledge like this.

[Igeteven]

Bob,

For God's sakes, I keep up with the current events on of California Racing, I readied a ton of web pages, I am not trying to be a smart A.., however, this does take time. I suggest you read, paceadvantgage, Bloodhorse, Cal Racing, The N.Y. columns on Cal Racing, The DRF, etc.

Then one can state an opinion on the subject, and it's not coming off the top of their head.

[LuckyDuck]

Bob,

For God's sakes, I keep up with the current events on of California Racing, I readied a ton of web pages, I am not trying to be a smart A.., however, this does take time. I suggest you read, paceadvantgage, Bloodhorse, Cal Racing, The N.Y. columns on Cal Racing, The DRF, etc.

Then one can state an opinion on the subject, and it's not coming off the top of their head.

I would love to know how your debt number was reduced by nearly 200 million overnight. That's a lot of Del Margeritas

[Bob B]

Bob,

For God's sakes, I keep up with the current events on of California Racing, I readied a ton of web pages, I am not trying to be a smart A.., however, this does take time. I suggest you read, paceadvantgage, Bloodhorse, Cal Racing, The N.Y. columns on Cal Racing, The DRF, etc.

Then one can state an opinion on the subject, and it's not coming off the top of their head.

I suggest you read more finance books and less paceadvantage postings, bloodhorse, cal racing, drf, etc. I'd put up my base of knowledge and 99% of the other posters on this forum against yours any day of the week. I'm sure your $200 million in debt comment wasn't coming off the top of your head.

[Igeteven]

Bob

Get with the program and move on, I am not going to debate you on this, last comment

[Bob B]

If you post inane and incorrect statements, I'll continue to call you on it. Last comment.

[Tuxtin]

need one of those head-banging smiley faces for lesters posts. the city of costa mesa wanted to buy the orange county fairgrounds which is located in costa mesa.....still trying to figure out your point on all this lez. state desperately needs money, state wants to sell assets, cities looking to purchase assets at low price, so what?

[Bloker]

Note: Rat was a La Jolla group.

Ratt?

Not that the spelling matters in the grand scheme of things, I guess.

Nirvana once played at Del Mar.

[MaryS]

Another story (emphasis added):

http://www.nctimes.com/business/article ... f67cb.html

DEL MAR: City deal to buy fairgrounds from state may unravel

$120 million bid draws opposition, requires two-thirds approval in Legislature

DEL MAR: City deal to buy fairgrounds from state may unravel

By PAT MAIO - pmaio@nctimes.com North County Times - Californian | Posted: Thursday, October 7, 2010 10:49 pm | (2) Comments | Print

DEL MAR ---- A $120 million deal that would sell the Del Mar Fairgrounds and racetrack to the city of Del Mar may not survive jockeying by lawmakers in Sacramento this week, but backers of the proposal vowed Thursday to keep it alive beyond the November elections.

"We are a long way from a sale," said Del Mar Mayor Richard Earnest. "The business points are pretty well resolved, but the political points could kill it."

The proposed sale of the 400-acre fairground and racetrack complex has been under discussion since February, but details leaked out this week as the Legislature worked to close a $20 billion deficit and get a controversial state funding bill passed.

A proposal to sell the fairgrounds, which was contained in a separate bill contingent upon passage of the larger budget legislation, was introduced late Wednesday by Sen. Christine Kehoe, D-San Diego, and Assemblywoman Lori Saldana, D-San Diego.

The proposal irked local officials who run the fairgrounds, who complained they were kept out of the loop about the potential sale, prompting them to label it as a "backroom deal."

Either way, Earnest said the proposal is complicated because the complex is owned by the 22nd District Agricultural Association, a state agency that owns and operates the Del Mar Fairgrounds, Surfside Race Place, Horsepark Equestrian Center and the Del Mar Golf Center.

Agricultural district officials are upset that they were excluded from discussions between city officials and state lawmakers who backed the sale. "The process was done in secret," said Barry Nussbaum, president of the agricultural association's board of directors. "It should have been done in public."

Nussbaum and Timothy J. Fennell, chief executive and general manager of the fairgrounds, held a press conference Thursday outside the Paddock Building at the fairgrounds to charge that the property is tremendously undervalued. A previous appraisal of the property stated the grounds could be valued as high as $1 billion, the two fair board members said.

"This has nothing to do with solving the budget crisis," said Nussbaum. The Del Mar complex provides about 5,000 jobs and has an economic impact of more than $400 million a year to the area, he said.

Fennell complained that the land is not for sale and is an asset of the county ---- not Del Mar. If plans proceed to sell the property, they could complicate existing contracts to manage the racetrack by the Thoroughbred Club and disrupt music concert scheduling and other events under negotiation at the fairgrounds, Fennell said. "This facility exists for everyone in the county, not for an exclusive group," he said.

Now that word of the proposed sale has leaked out, Earnest said the legislation could be pulled from consideration until after the state's budget crisis is settled and the November elections are wrapped up.

He explained that Del Mar officials have a three-pronged plan to fund the purchase of the fair property for $120 million.

The city would finance part of the deal from revenue bonds. The property's existing debt, which totals roughly $56 million, carries a triple A-rating from Standard & Poor's, its highest rating.

When ratings are higher, money can be borrowed at lower interest rates. With triple-A ratings at the fairgrounds, the city could borrow upward of $40 million by issuing new bonds.

Second, the city has proposed working with Michael E. Pegram, co-owner of the 2010 Preakness Stakes winner, Lookin' at Lucky, and the 1998 Kentucky Derby and Preakness Stakes winner, Real Quiet. Pegram also owns a number of McDonald's fast-food franchises in Washington and the Phoenix area, where he lives part-time. He also has a home in Del Mar.

According to Earnest, Pegram is willing to prepay a long-term lease to run the racetrack and commit significant funding to improve the property. Pegram could not be immediately reached for comment.

Last, Earnest said the state has offered to lend money to the city to make the acquisition.

Earnest declined to elaborate on the financial details of how the city would buy the property, which he said would be run by a new board with regional representation made up of "non-elected professionals."

The governor appoints a board to oversee operations and maintenance. The District Agricultural Association would get to run the fairgrounds' operation and provide maintenance for a year after ownership of the property was transferred to the city, should the bill be passed.

Earnest said the purchase price would not be paid from the city's general fund, or by taxpayers. "We believe this property should be under local control, not state control."

He also said that the city's effort to buy the fairgrounds and racetrack is a way to save horse racing locally. Parimutuel betting is on the decline in the state, and racetracks throughout the state have been closing, he observed. "We think this is a way to save horse racing in California, and thousands of jobs."

Seth Unger, a spokesman for Martin Garrick, R-Solana Beach, said indications are that the bill is not likely to go anywhere this year.

"It was introduced in the eleventh hour. It's not over until it's over, but it would take a two-thirds majority vote to pass the bill in both the Senate and Assembly," Unger said. "Garrick doesn't support this at all. The process was completely flawed. The merits of the bill have not gone through any public comment process from local officials and interested parties."