Suffolk Downs Burns as Boston Firefighters Respond to Six-Alarm Blaze
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Posted on: May 31, 2022, 12:22h.
Last updated on: May 31, 2022, 12:25h.
A six-alarm fire raged Monday night and into Tuesday morning at Suffolk Downs, an old thoroughbred race track in East Boston.
The cause of the blaze was unknown as of 1:15 am ET Tuesday, nor was there any word of injuries. However, the Boston Fire Department reported moments later that the fire was mostly under control, with some crews still checking for hot spots.
Earlier, the department ordered firefighters off the roof as crews pumped water to attack flames from above. The department needed to pump water to the site due to limited availability near the track.
Live racing at Suffolk Downs ended about three years ago. However, the facility has continued to serve as a simulcasting center since then. According to its website, Suffolk Downs was open to take wagers Monday and was slated to close around 6:30 pm ET.
The center was scheduled to be closed Tuesday and Wednesday.
Closed Track a Landmark
While the track has been closed for live racing for some time, the nearly 87-year-old facility is considered a Boston landmark. It was built in two months in July 1935, a year after Massachusetts lawmakers legalized parimutuel wagering. At the time it was built, the 16,000-seat grandstand was the largest in the US, according to the Digital Public Library of America.
The legendary Seabiscuit raced there. Decades later, the Beatles would perform there. But racing would struggle as the years went by. The track closed temporarily at least twice.
Suffolk Downs tried to become a racino when lawmakers legalized casino gaming in the state in 2011. Track officials sought partnerships with both Caesars and later with the Mohegan Sun. However, East Boston residents voted against the proposal.
Meanwhile, residents in nearby Everett got behind a measure that led to the opening of Encore Boston Harbor, owned by Wynn Resorts. Encore opened on June 23, 2019. A week later, Suffolk Downs held its last race day.
Suffolk Downs Redevelopment Plans Underway
Just last week, Suffolk Downs made headlines as development group HYM Investment Group, the firm that bought the track in 2017, broke ground at the 161-acre site for a mixed-use neighborhood in East Boston. It’s a project, according to Bloomberg News, that will be the biggest single private development in the city’s history.
Technically, the project will straddle both East Boston and Revere.
In all, the firm plans to build out more than 16 million square feet of housing and retail space as well as office complexes designed to target life science companies. That includes 10,000 apartments and condominiums. HYM CEO Tom O’Brien told the Boston Business Journal the goal is to have nearly half of those units built within the next eight years.
To back the redevelopment of Suffolk Downs, HYM announced last week that it secured $775 million in funding from the pension plan for the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers.
Meanwhile, there have been discussions about bringing thoroughbred racing back to the state. However, residents in Plymouth overwhelmingly rejected plans for one in a May 21 town vote. While the ballot question was nonbinding, 6,440 out of 7,321 votes cast opposed to the project.
Last week, Plymouth Select Board Chairman Betty Cavacco sent a letter to the Massachusetts Gaming Commission. In it, she told the state agency that based on the town vote, the Board plans to formally oppose a plan for a track at its next meeting. That’s scheduled for June 7.
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