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i . BMMi | Weighing In — ■-— : ■ — By Evan Shipman Press Told of Plans for New York Racing Machinery Set Up to Accomplish Changes Jockey Club Envisions New Track for 1958 BELMONT PARK, Elmont, L. I., N. Y., June 3.— When we newspapermen trooped downstairs to the offices of the president of the Westchester Racing As-r. i . sociation sociation yesterday yesterday following following the the sociation sociation yesterday yesterday following following the the running of the sixth event on the afternoons program, we went prepared to listen to an announcement that would elucidate the future of thoroughbred racing in New York State. Knowing The Jockey Clubs plan for the purchase and amalgamation of the various existing associations, the object being to operate the sport under a single authority on a a non-profit non-profit basis, basis,, we we expected expected to to i BMMi | a a non-profit non-profit basis, basis,, we we expected expected to to i hear how this ambitious project was to be executed; what changes were contemplated here at Belmont Park; where and when the much-discussed new track for Long Island would be built, and what arrangements had been either made or prepared for the purchase of the stock in the tracks we have at present — Belmont, Aqueduct, Jamaica and Saratoga. John W. Hanes, president of the board of trustees of the Greate New York Association, gave us a brief but clear explanation of what had already been done, and then answered as best he could the inevitable questions designed to receive concrete answers when no concrete answers, we soon learned, could, as yet be made. At this moment, the situation is still — may we say-r-ex tremely "fluid," but one. important fact did, nevertheless, emerge from the cloud of uncertainty surrounding any and all immediate plans, and that was the creation of adequate machinery to undertake the great changes that are imminent, and that have not only the approval of the New York State Racing Commission, but also of the public that the commission protects and represents. Project Calls for Tremendous Expenditure First of all arid as we had been aware, a great deal of money is involved. The financing of a project on the scale of The Jockey Clubs plan is a complex matter, but that is. exactly where Hanes experience — he was assistant Secretary of the Treasury under President Roosevelt, and was later an important factor in the reorganization of General Motors — becomes invaluable. As we understand it, arrangements have been made with the banks for the money necessary to buy out the various associations stockholders at what a general agreement shall deem a -fair price, and also to build a new, modern track and completely renovate and modernize another. Until yesterday afternoon, none of us had heard of B. A. Tompkins, a vice-president of Bankers Trust Co., but Hanes announced the appointment of Thompkins as "president of the administrative division" of the new association, and it was clear that he will determine how money is to be raised and control the spending of it. Just exactly what is to be done, we found out, will depend on the amendability of Aqueducts and Jamaicas stockholders, and jthen — that hurdle cleared — on the recommendations of committees already appointed by The Jockey Clubs new association. Cyrus Jullien, representing Aqueduct, and John A. Morris, representing Jamaica, were present yesterday. We gained the impression that Morris was sympathetic to The Jockey Club plan, but it was clear that Jullien was unable to commit himself in any way, while he also emphasized that Aqueduct was an important stockholder in the Metropolitan Racing Association, meaning Jamaica. In answer to questions, Hanes told us it was unlikely that a single associations refusal to cooperate could interfere with the completion of the plan, but if more than one .association held out, there simply would not be any. plan; everything would be scrapped, and we would return to the status quo. Await Building Committees Recommendations Granted that the stock can be purchased, what happens next? That is up to the "building committee," composed of John C. Clark, Harry F. Guggenheim, Robert J. Kleberg, Jr., William Woodward, Jr., and Alfred G. Vanderbilt, chairman. This committee, newly formed, has presumably studied the situation as individuals; its recommendations to the association can be expected shortly. Making a quick guess, Vanderbilt told us that if construction began on the new track this fall, an opening date could not be set before the spring of 1958. The site of this new track — it seems probable — would have to be on the present Aqueduct property. We understood that the changes contemplated at Belmont, tearing down the present grandstand and rebuilding on the other side of the strip, together with changes to the strip itself, would require about the same period of time as the building of a completely new track. Hanes informed us that the amount of money that would be at the associations disposal was insufficient for building two new track simultaneously; racing will, of course, continue at the available tracks while the one NEW TRACK is in process of construction. If Belmont is to be renovated first and the new track built later, it will mean that racing for two full years will be restricted to Aqueduct and Jamaica. It is our own private guess that this is not going to happen. Our prediction is that Belmont and Jamaica will carry the load until the new track opens its gates in April 58, at which time it will be Belmonts turn to Continued on Pago Fifty I WEIGHING IN By EVAN SHIPMAN Continued from Page Fifty-Six undergo a "face-lifting," while Jamaica will be disposed of, the sum realized contributing to construction costs elsewhere. Admittedly, the wish is father to that thought. If we find Aqueduct and Jamaica inadequate now, what about two years of uninterrupted racing? Frankly, it is an almost intolerable prospect, nor can we conceive of the new association inflicting it on us if there is any other way out of the predicament. However, it was explicitly to find a way out of our present predicament that The Jockey Club created the new association, and that the new association in turn has appointed its various committees. We have confidence that the right road will be chosen toward a more mature conception of the sport than any we have known.
