The race isn’t over, but the future is gaining ground at Los Alamitos Race Course
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In a harbinger of things to come for Los Alamitos Race Course, it was decided last week that Cypress will begin an environmental review, tract map and development agreement that would allow the sale of 14 parcels of the historic track’s vast acreage to prospective developers.
A defined plan is not yet in place, but with the blessing of the Cypress City Council, the future of the property just took a big step.
The U.S. horse racing industry is in decline and Los Alamitos has seen its share of challenges. State regulators demanded it improve animal safety measures last year, following a string of horse deaths. On a single weekend last month, two horses died in separate incidents.
But course execs, including majority property owner Edward Allred M.D., want it understood that the races aren’t over at the venerable facility, at least not at this moment.
“There’s no plan for the race course to close,” Frank Sherren, facilities manager and track superintendent, told those assembled for the public hearing. “We’re going to run as long as we possibly can. It’s Dr. Allred’s passion, his hobby, the love of his life, and we’re going to run quarter horses as long as we can.”
According to the TimesOC coverage of the three-hour hearing, “city staff outlined a 15-year time frame for phased development of individual parcels after the race course closes and is demolished.”
When the day comes that the course rides off into history, the plan would be to put parks, housing and possibly mixed-use developments on more than 130 buildable acres, according to the report. So, while the finish line for Los Alamitos still lies ahead, the plans for its demise are already in motion.
MORE NEWS
• An app-based mobile parking payment system is being implemented in Laguna Beach following the approval of a $1-million contract with IPS Group, Inc. In other Laguna news, the nonprofit Laguna Beach Community Land Trust has, over the past seven months, acquired dozens of units in Laguna Canyon for artists who are in need of affordable live/work accommodations.
• The city of Anaheim this month settled a wrongful arrest lawsuit for $250,000 over a car that had been purchased at a dealership.
• This item falls squarely in the category of laws that probably shouldn’t have to be written: Newport Beach has banned the use of public spaces at its harbor as bathrooms.
• Butch Twining, the mayor pro tem of Huntington Beach, made a public apology at a council meeting last week for having said “Why don’t you go f— yourself?” to a protester two days earlier.
• The “DeFlock” contingent pushing for the removal of Flock surveillance cameras throughout Costa Mesa learned during the last council meeting that’s not going to happen. Also, Costa Mesa will be asking voters to approve a business license fee hike this November in hopes of improving the city’s finances.
• Hit with an unexpected 25% rent increase for space she’s leased for decades on Ocean View School District property, the operator of BrightStar Learning Centers that serves families with infants, toddlers and preschoolers said the center may have to leave Huntington Beach.
BUSINESS
• A pair of Orange County sisters in their 20s have launched a new women’s golf apparel brand, Good Sport Collective, that’s currently sold online only, but they hope to get it into pro shops.
• Cenaduría Doña Tere, a pozole focused puesto, has opened at Mercado González on Harbor Boulevard in Costa Mesa.
PUBLIC SAFETY
• No one was injured Monday afternoon when a small plane made an emergency landing on the sands at Huntington State Beach shortly after takeoff from John Wayne Airport.
• A 21-year-old man died of his injuries following a crash involving an e-bike in Huntington Beach on July 21. On Tuesday, the man was identified as Jeffrey James Marlow, a Westminster resident.
CRIME
• The man who was a “person of interest” in last week’s death of 61-year-old Angela Caprioli, whose body was found in a Laguna Beach home on July 20, turned out to be her son. Safford James Wolfson, 36, has been charged with slaying his mother with a hammer.
• A 36-year-old woman who operates Canine Paws Rescue has been charged with more than a dozen counts of animal abuse in Newport Beach.
• Following a road rage incident that began in Long Beach, a shirtless, machete-wielding suspect was shot by police near UCI Health in Los Alamitos last Wednesday.
SPORTS
• Local girls’ and boys’ teams have cleaned up at the USA Water Polo Junior Olympics held in Irvine this month, with most of them capturing gold medals. Here are links to the Daily Pilot’s coverage of the games:
— Newport Beach Water Polo 10U girls win third straight Junior Olympics gold,
— Newport Beach 12U, 14U girls earn gold at USA Water Polo Junior Olympics,
— Newport Beach 10U boys earn gold at USA Water Polo Junior Olympics, and
— Roundup: Newport Beach 18U boys settle for silver at Junior Olympics
• Nearly half of the teams making The Times’ preseason top 25 Southland high school football rankings represent Orange County. Follow this link to find out where your favorite prep squad falls on the list.
LIFE & LEISURE
• Here’s an item about an O.C. teen who is bridging the digital divide: Phoebe Jin-Ngo, who is entering her senior year of high school, has established a nonprofit to teach senior citizens how to become more tech savvy.
• Have you checked out the new food offerings at this year’s O.C. Fair? If not, take a look at reporter Sarah Mosqueda’s findings here. Deep fried tiramisu, anyone? Also, did you know that fair-goers can deposit prizes they win at carnival games into OC Fair & Share donation boxes set up near the exits for the eventual distribution to kids by Lions Clubs? Here’s the full story.
KEEP IN TOUCH
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