NEWS & VIEWS continued from page 10
able rates are maintained to allow for continued public use and maintenance of the facilities. 4-H is a key partner of the NRMA and the Cecil County Fair, and represents the future of eques- trian sports. Cecil County 4-H will continue to fi nd a home for its activities at Fair Hill.
Q. When FHI gets a Four-Star, will it continue to host a Two-Star and a T ree-Star? A. Fair Hill International has been running the CCI3* event for almost 30 years. We are com- mitted to providing the best competitions we can that fi t well within the Area II, National, and International calendars. FHI plans to run the level or levels with the Four-Star that best complement the calendar and work within the context of the other fall events.
Q. Will the Two-Star and T ree-Star get relo- cated if FHI does get the Four-Star? A. All of the reasons for changing venues for the Four-Star event also exist for the Two-Star and T ree-Star events. T erefore, it is antici- pated that, over time, the events will move to the new venue whether FHI is awarded the Four-Star or not.
Q. If the T ree-Star hosts about 15,000, and the Four-Star will host about 80,000…where will they stay? A. T e estimation of 80,000 people is based on four-day attendance at the Four-Star held in Kentucky. We anticipate that the Fair Hill Four-Star attendance will increase gradually over the fi rst years in operation, which is typical. In addition, event attendance is spread out over four days, with the bulk coming for just one day, cross-country. Many people may stay in nearby Newark and Wilmington areas as well as Cecil and Harford counties, which is why Delaware has agreed to direct some hotel revenues gar- nered during the event back to MD.
Q. $40,000 was spent for a study so far; by whom and for what? A. Approximately $35,000 in funding was put together for the bid proposal. T at funding came from the MD Horse Industry Board as well as county and state tourism agencies that recognize the Four-Star as a golden opportu- nity to generate tourism for Maryland. T is is routinely done in order to bring all sorts of sports and cultural events to the state.
www.equiery.com | 800-244-9580
Q. I heard that the estimate for the improve- ments needed just for the Four-Star will cost $23 million; how will a public facility raise that kind of money? A. T e $23M fi gure is incorrect and may have been taken from the MD Horse Park System study of 2015, which estimated that amount of expense to make many improvements to Fair Hill over a number of years. T e Four-Star was not under consideration at the time of the
study. In addition, a group of stakeholders com- prised of Fair Hill equestrian event users and others met and pared down costs.
Q. I’ve read that $250,000 was raised through Fair Hill Foundation, and that $250,000 came from the state, and then I have also heard $500,000? What is the current total raised or earmarked to date? $500,000 or $1 million? A. T e correct fi gure is $500,000. Private dona- tions were raised to match public funding. T is money is being used to fund engineering and design work.
Q. I read that $8 million to $10 million would be used just to irrigate the racecourse, reconfi gure the turns and renovate the grandstand, and then another $3 million for spectator amenities. Where did these fi gures come from? Is there more? A. An estimated $8-10 million will be needed for the improve- ments to the turf racecourse,
will include:
which im-
proving utilities, renovating the grandstand,
build-
ing the tunnel under RT 273, and chang- ing the racetrack confi guration and adding irrigation. T is fi gure may change as we get more information back in the engi- neering phase.
ticket sales, ancillary branded items, etc. T e Four-Star will maintain a separate budget, and its operations will run in accordance with that budget.
Any public debt incurred for infrastructure
improvements could be recouped through dol- lars generated through the activities hosted at Fair Hill. Hosting the Four-Star would dimin- ish the number of events needed annually to repay any debts.
Q. Where can I get more information? A.
Fairhill4star.com T e Maryland Stadium Authority, which is taking the lead on this project, has created a general information website,
fairhill4star.com. At this point, the website provides the general concept and really cool concept illustrations from Populous (the global architectural fi rm specializing in the design of sports facilities, arenas and conven- tion centers,
and
An additional $3 million will be needed to improve the infi eld of the racecourse with competition rings and to construct the new cross-country course. T e course will start and end in Saw Mill Field, wind through the old roads and tracks course and be integrated with the cur- rent timber course. T e total project cost will be split 50-50 be- tween public and private sources.
Tips on Running a Four-Star: Hugh Thomas, right, Director of Badminton UK 4 Star, held a 90-minute meeting with FHI’s Carla Geiersbach advising her on organizational details of running an international Four-Star. Badminton rolled out the red carpet for the four-person Fair Hill team.
the FEI and USEF.”
A.
http://www.mdstad.com T is is the offi cial website for Maryland Sta- dium Authority. As of press, there is no infor- mation yet on the site about Fair Hill, but Terry Hassletine anticipates that sometime this sum- mer the project will show up under “Current Studies.” So stay tuned.
Q. Will the funds raised or set aside to date be used just for studies, or will it also be used for the improvements? A. T e initial $500,000 will be used for MSA engineering and design studies and for devel- oping a comprehensive plan and work schedule. If costs of the studies are less, funds could be used for other project costs.
Q. What happens if the Four-Star does not eventually attract 80,000 people? Will we (the taxpayers) still be able to pay off the debt for the improvements? A. T e money needed to operate the Four-Star will be raised through corporate sponsorships,
A.
http://dnr2.maryland.gov/publiclands/pag- es/central/
fairhillplan.aspx T e land is own by the State of Maryland and is managed by the Department of Natural Re- sources and is offi cially known as the Fair Hill Natural Resource Management Area. DNR’s website does contain information, along with numerous public documents, about prior and current plans for FHNRMA. It also includes diagrams and fl owcharts illustrating the public process for developing and executing improve- ments, which will appeal to the wonks within us. T e link is hard to fi nd when navigating continued...
JULY 2017 | THE EQUIERY | 65
which is responsible for several interna- tional equestrian arenas), but at this point does not con- tain details on the bidding process or budget forecasts. According to Terry Hasseltine, “As more concrete information is obtained, it will be posted and shared with the public ac- cording to the rules and regulations of the state and county agencies as well as
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