Owner Shake-Up Clouds Santa Anita’s Fate

The fate of the legendary Santa Anita racetrack in Arcadia remained up in the air following a sudden management shake-up at its corporate parent, Meditrust Cos., industry observers said Wednesday.

Meditrust, a giant real estate investment trust, and Santa Anita Cos. merged late last year in a $383-million deal that was motivated primarily by the substantial tax savings generated by Santa Anita’s unique corporate structure. Meditrust adopted that corporate structure following the merger.

But the architect of the merger, Meditrust Chairman and Chief Executive Abraham D. Gosman, resigned Tuesday amid investor discontent with the company’s corporate strategy.

Explaining his departure after 13 years with the company, Gosman said in a statement, “I feel that I have accomplished my mission.”

Meditrust, which is headquartered in Needham Heights, Mass., appointed Thomas M. Taylor as interim chairman. Taylor is an investment advisor with close ties to the wealthy Bass family, which owns nearly 10% of Meditrust. The company also appointed Meditrust President David F. Benson as interim CEO.

In a statement, the company said it will spend the next 60 days searching for a permanent replacement for Gosman and “expects to maintain . . . its commitments to further growth in health-care, golf and lodging industries.”

Last week, Meditrust, which bought the La Quinta hotel chain earlier this year, said it was studying its options after Congress adopted legislation that limits the future tax benefits that flow from the corporate structure it adopted from Santa Anita.

Santa Anita Cos. operated as two companies whose stocks traded as a pair on the New York Stock Exchange. One company--a real estate investment trust--owned the property and enjoyed the tax savings afforded REITs. The sister company operated the facilities.

Industry analysts said they don’t expect any major sales of company properties. However, it’s not clear what role if any the Santa Anita Cos. will play once the review is over, analysts said. A Meditrust spokesman declined to elaborate on the company’s previous statements.

The Santa Anita racetrack is an insignificant part of Meditrust, which has a portfolio of real estate and companies valued at $7 billion, said Burland B. East, a real estate investment trust analyst for Everen Securities Inc.

“Santa Anita is an afterthought,” East said of the track, which opened in 1934. “It’s meaningless for them except for the corporate structure.”