Ed Allred, owner and CEO of Los Alamitos Racecourse has announced he will invest a minimum of $500,000 and up to $1 million over the next 12 months on a series of significant improvement projects to the backstretch facilities at Los Al Racecourse in Cypress.
According to an account on Bloodhorse.com, the Orange County track will begin with the first set of new upgrades beginning immediately.
The article said Los Alamitos Racecourse management, which includes track president Cathy Monji, interim racing director Jordan Castaneda, and track superintendent Frank Sherren, have been conducting thorough inspections of all backstretch areas in recent weeks to designate and prioritize the projects.
They said starting Aug. 7, work has started with modernizing men’s and women’s bathrooms in the backstretch. New concrete has already been poured into designated areas to help prevent standing water and avoid excess mud around the barns.
The improvements are in addition to the year-round repairs conducted by the maintenance staff at Los Alamitos in the barn area, which includes any type of roofing needs and repairs to the barns.
In June Los Alamitos completed work on improvements to the receiving barn and testing areas prioritizing suggestions and recommendations from staff in those areas. Los Alamitos also built a brand-new office at the main entrance of the barn area for more efficient traffic control.
“We are going to continue to improve and modernize our backstretch at Los Alamitos Race Course,” Allred said. “The work on announced projects will start right away.”
Less than 10 years ago, after the closure of Hollywood Park and in anticipation of the Southern California Thoroughbred racing circuit’s need for training and racing, Los Alamitos Race Course conducted an extensive racetrack expansion from a five-eighths-mile track to a one-mile dirt track. This landmark construction was completed ahead of the announced deadlines and featured major changes, as well as improvements to the barn area.
These improvements included adding four new, modern, and full-sized barns in preparation for the influx of horses from Hollywood Park. A new receiving barn closer to the paddock area was also built; and the large walking area between the rows of barns was completely changed from a paved path to a dirt path—consistent to the dirt being used on the racetrack—to improve horse and rider safety.
Additional projects to the barn area for 2023-2024 will be announced in the months to come.