{"id":179192,"date":"2025-06-12T19:56:22","date_gmt":"2025-06-12T19:56:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/179192\/"},"modified":"2025-06-12T19:56:22","modified_gmt":"2025-06-12T19:56:22","slug":"freehold-raceway-sold-historic-nj-horse-track-to-become-retail-destination","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/179192\/","title":{"rendered":"Freehold Raceway sold: Historic NJ horse track to become retail destination"},"content":{"rendered":"<p class=\"article__paragraph article__paragraph--left\" id=\"4FMC6A23QRFWVAM2GCJRZIFFSA\">The days of horse racing are officially over at the nation\u2019s oldest daytime half-mile harness racetrack.<\/p>\n<p class=\"article__paragraph article__paragraph--left\" id=\"ZELHTOIFCVE4DD424MHXJV24RI\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nj.com\/news\/2024\/12\/nj-racetrack-closing-for-good-this-weekend-heres-how-to-place-your-last-bets.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"https:\/\/www.nj.com\/news\/2024\/12\/nj-racetrack-closing-for-good-this-weekend-heres-how-to-place-your-last-bets.html\">Freehold Raceway in Monmouth County<\/a>, which closed in December, has new owners who plan to transform the site into a retail space.<\/p>\n<p class=\"article__paragraph article__paragraph--left\" id=\"V3WCYDGUZVHAJCWKIGDCTP7ZWI\">Raceway RE Partners, a New Jersey-based real estate group, announced Wednesday that it has purchased the 58-acre property.<\/p>\n<p class=\"article__paragraph article__paragraph--left\" id=\"PLGTZTGEVJF6BH744FLHVJ3N5U\">Preliminary plans do not include bringing back horse racing. Instead, the developers want to create a \u201cfamily-friendly\u201d community destination.<\/p>\n<p class=\"article__paragraph article__paragraph--left\" id=\"OSJCMGTMUZFNLJ37GE7PRESUBM\">The vision includes a walkable, mixed-use space with retail shops, dining, a boutique hotel and a social club.<\/p>\n<p class=\"article__paragraph article__paragraph--left\" id=\"SRM56CDCM5HVTLZUXRXLWKATWE\">Further details and renderings of the proposed development were not released.<\/p>\n<p class=\"article__paragraph article__paragraph--left\" id=\"6KBKBCV34JF5VFCWDSSKGTQLMA\">The developers said they will continue to provide updates as planning progresses.<\/p>\n<p class=\"article__paragraph article__paragraph--left\" id=\"Q3VSMSIUBZBEPMI7HNF4RMEAL4\">\u201cThis land holds generations of memories \u2014 an incredible 171 years of horse racing took place here \u2014 and we intend to honor that legacy while introducing a vibrant, exciting, and forward-thinking destination for all,\u201d Raceway RE Partners said in a release.<\/p>\n<p class=\"article__paragraph article__paragraph--left\" id=\"7QKSPBB63VHKHGIW2YCOTA2VMQ\">The purchase price of the racetrack was not disclosed.<\/p>\n<ul class=\"article__unordered-list\">\n<li><b>MORE: <\/b><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nj.com\/monmouth\/2024\/09\/remembering-freehold-raceway-as-iconic-nj-track-prepares-to-shut-down.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"https:\/\/www.nj.com\/monmouth\/2024\/09\/remembering-freehold-raceway-as-iconic-nj-track-prepares-to-shut-down.html\"><b>Remembering Freehold Raceway as iconic N.J. track prepares to shut down<\/b><\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p class=\"article__paragraph article__paragraph--left\" id=\"3AFJINTXCJA6DDEIJOWVMPTFGI\">In 1999, the track was acquired for $46 million by Pennwood Racing, a partnership between Penn Entertainment and Greenwood Racing, according to the company.<\/p>\n<p class=\"article__paragraph article__paragraph--left\" id=\"CZ5BLDNIQNBAVHMZZOYROX5A5A\">In December, Freehold Raceway held its final race, bringing an end to an era that began in the 1850s.<\/p>\n<p><img src=\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/NRPOEHBN5ZAMVILEORF7NJVI4E.jpg\"  fetchpriority=\"low\" loading=\"lazy\" alt=\"Racetrack to close\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"article__image-content\" height=\"600\" width=\"300\"\/><\/p>\n<p class=\"article__mm-image-caption-text\">Freehold Raceway in Freehold shut down late last year. Here, trotters head for the finish line during a horse race at the raceway on Oct. 24, 2020. AP<\/p>\n<p class=\"article__paragraph article__paragraph--left\" id=\"DOS36KIWW5ERNECIB5UQWGL5B4\">With attendance declining in recent years, raceway officials said operations could not continue under existing conditions. <\/p>\n<p class=\"article__paragraph article__paragraph--left\" id=\"4YOCKM7RVZADFIW5PT6Q62WJ6Q\">At the time, Freehold Borough Mayor Kevin Kane attributed the shutdown to poor management by track officials and waning interest in standardbred harness racing.<\/p>\n<p class=\"article__paragraph article__paragraph--left\" id=\"67KYQMKM6JDDDJVPOS7RDCFUM4\">The announcement that the track was shutting down <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nj.com\/monmouth\/2024\/09\/historic-nj-racetrack-is-shutting-down.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"https:\/\/www.nj.com\/monmouth\/2024\/09\/historic-nj-racetrack-is-shutting-down.html\">stirred nostalgia among many<\/a>, but some viewed the racetrack\u2019s closure as a step forward for animal welfare.<\/p>\n<p class=\"article__paragraph article__paragraph--left\" id=\"HHCJE6P7FZDCNNPWPPO22IDBO4\">Freehold Raceway was owned by Penn Entertainment and Greenwood Racing when it was sold. Earlier this month, the former owners, settled <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nj.com\/monmouth\/2024\/10\/nj-horse-owners-sue-freehold-raceway-for-broken-promises-leading-to-shutdown.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"https:\/\/www.nj.com\/monmouth\/2024\/10\/nj-horse-owners-sue-freehold-raceway-for-broken-promises-leading-to-shutdown.html\">a lawsuit<\/a> filed by the Standardbred Breeders and Owners Association of New Jersey. <\/p>\n<p class=\"article__paragraph article__paragraph--left\" id=\"T7I5NK3EIFE2NGC2DG6VWMVGKA\">The association alleged that FR Park Racing, the joint venture operating the track, failed to maintain the property and provide a safe environment for racing.<\/p>\n<p class=\"article__paragraph article__paragraph--left\" id=\"WWTHFY55OVDF3EM3PY7LZEBLZ4\">Our journalism needs your support. Please subscribe today to NJ.com. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The days of horse racing are officially over at the nation\u2019s oldest daytime half-mile harness racetrack. Freehold Raceway&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":179193,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4107],"tags":[1071,79,16,15],"class_list":{"0":"post-179192","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-racing","8":"tag-racing","9":"tag-sports","10":"tag-uk","11":"tag-united-kingdom"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/114672159201256514","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/179192","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=179192"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/179192\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/179193"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=179192"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=179192"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=179192"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}