Plans for Fair Grounds: Louisiana Jockey Club to Enlarge and Beautify Entire Plant, Daily Racing Form, 1926-04-15

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• PLANS FOR FAIR GROUNDS ♦ Louisiana Jockey Club to Enlarge and Beautify Entire Plant. Grandstand Enlargement to Make Room for Increased Patronage — New Drainage System and Improvements. • NEW ORPHANS. La.. April 14 —Following an extended meeting Monday afternoon, officials of the Ixmisiana Jockey Club announced work would begin at once on a quarter of million dollars worth of improvements at the Fair Grounds, designed to make what is already acknowledged a beautiful racing plant even more notable for its facilities. The improvements range from an extension of the grandstand and a reconditioning of the entire track, to the construction of a great hot house for growing the ornamental flowers and shrubs to be used in carrying out an elaborate plan of landscape gardening. The grandstand enlargement, when completed, will give space for an additional 12,"i00 persons, making the plant capable of handling a 25,000 attendance expected when the 192" renewal of the New Orleans Handicap for $.10. 000 added is run as one of the richest all-age stake races in the country. The increased capacity will be brought about first by extending the present grandstand nearly a hundred feet to replace the structure which now houses the offices of the stewards and the racing secretary, the jockeys room and the emergency hospital. This will bring the grandstand to the present paddock, the mutiicl department being carried along with it. From this depar.ment the various concessions and the main stairway will also be moved so as to give a continuous and unobstructed chamber, the main stairway betas swung around toward the side and three additional sairways being constructed. There will he no stairs leading from the grandstand to the lawn. Where these stairs are now will run one unbroken series of concrete terraces, falling away from a line below the floor level of the box and to the lawn, all of which is to be concreted. The tremendous terrace will be pierced at eight points by tunnels leading from the lawn to the mutuel department and the concessions removed from the main mutuel room will he at the back of the terraces, under cover. The administration offices as well as the offices now occupied by the stewards, racing secretary, etc.. will all be housed in a new administration building, to be -instructed at the Gentilly end of the paddock, where the jockeys room, emergency hospital and the various offices will henceforth he located. The present administrative office on the Continued on twelfth |«igo PLANS FOR FAIR GROUNDS Continued from first page upper ramp of the grandstand will be done away with to make room for an enlargement of the womens mutuel department, the size of which will be nearly trebled before the opening of the next season. The entire track will be reconditioned and a greatly improved drainage system will be installed at a cost of $.".0,000. Various changes for the new clubhouse are also announced. For tine thing, the upper terrace for spectators will be put under a | roof so it will be sheltered during inclement weather. Ear another, the broad walks of-the clubhouse and lawn will he depressed below the general level of the lawn and the latter planted with hedges and parked to conform with tin- "half-moon park. which front it in the infield Another beautiful Kirk is to be added heyond the clubhouse lawn. A special press box. much larger and more commodious than the present Structure, is to be built at the very front of the grandstand. at the level of the grandstand roof. those present at the meeting Monday afternoon when the decision to embark on the extensive improvement and beautiflcatloa program was readied were Col. K. R. Bradley. K. !. Sehleider. John P. Sullivan and general manager James M. Murphy. *


Persistent Link: https://drf.uky.edu/catalog/1920s/drf1926041501/drf1926041501_1_3
Local Identifier: drf1926041501_1_3
Library of Congress Record: https://lccn.loc.gov/unk82075800