The life of the Lopes Canyon Ranch was short-lived. It appeared to be the control room for the elevator system. The large, futuristically designed structure gave an optimistic look for the 1960s. Next week's post will be about a couple of neat old abandoned houses in Dateland, AZ that I explored later that day. Phoenix Mixed-Use Project Takes a Giant Step. West Valley View. The Short Life and Long Death of Phoenix Trotting Park. It feels like ages since I was there. Check out Long-vacant Phoenix Trotting Park in Goodyear is in escrow, could be demolished by Adrian Hedden.
(Dec 2010). Former horse racing track in Goodyear, Arizona, "Phoenix Trotting Park, An Architectural Paragon, Has Set Out to Win The West! Phoenix Trotting Park was one of the most incredible places I'd ever explored. Some require great effort to seek out, but others are hiding right under our noses in plain sight. Stars of the sport like Billy Haughton and Joe O'Brien and the reigning national dash champion Bob Farrington came to the desert for the opening night action, but the honor of driving first winner went to Gerry Kazmaier. 8 Buffalo Raceway History. Katie Lawrence is a Southeast Texas native who graduated 18th in her high school class with a GPA of 4.25. Third Level - Employee Locker Rooms, Employee Cafeteria, Main Kitchen, Store Rooms, Restaurant Space
224-Acre Mixed-Use Hub Proposed for Goodyear. In 1960, Phoenix was not the thriving metropolis it is today. She broke her arm and lost her shoes its always been something kids come and (do), of course its trespassing, but they come and check it out. Description. Second Level - Betting Windows, Offices & Storage Rooms, Multiple Bars, More Restrooms, Escalator (Top)
"too damn far out" at least 20 miles from the center of Phoenix and that, at the time, there weren't any major roads connecting Phoenix and the track. MAY 20, 2017 - ARIZONA REPUBLIC - Iconic Phoenix Trotting Park along I-10 in Goodyear set for demolition
I haven't been to Corn Springs, but I may have to check it out next time I'm in the area. "An Arizona sunset staged its daily extravaganza in the background and a misty blue haze hung low over the quiet desert growth," Flora wrote about the opening night vista. (13 May 2004). This page was last edited on 5 October 2022, at 03:19. (Nov 1964). Berlin, Germany Berlin 1947 (Part 11) aka Trotting Race Jimmy Dunnigan knew racing and racetracks and his expertise attracted investors who wanted to see harness racing gain a foothold in Phoenix. Thank you. He did get permission before flying there. The Trotting Park has been listed for sale! February 12, 2022 - Thank you to everyone who sent in their letters following the "Only In Your State" article. The gran. Hello and thanks for stopping by! The park was used in 2000 for the filming of the movie ". It always pays off to be silent and aware of your surroundings when exploring alone.Great pictures. Temp: 33. A lot of research has been done to ensure the accuracy and validity of information shown on this website. Hard times forced him to sell the Buffalo Raceway to the Sportservice Corporation that same year.[8]. The hot weather of the desert caused events to be uncomfortable to attendees. )Trotting Park is really a trip( enjoyed your great photos! The 1960s were an era of unbridled optimism in harness racing. (28 Mar 2014). The land sold for $16.5 million to a New York-based developer called Keystone Equities LLC. (10 Mar 2021). The purpose of this website is to preserve the Trotting Park's history, to tell the story of the owner's failed dream, and to educate the curious about this unusual racetrack and its troubled past. Sign up for free today. All of the concrete structural members (except the floor and roof slabs) were post-tensioned using a system called Prescon. 0:54. And glad to hear you got a chance to see Phoenix Trotting Park. I will definitely keep posting. Chronicle Books. Very informative and I can't wait to go see some of these places as well. Uh oh.. Published September 27, 2017. 14 Arizona Harness Racing, Inc. (7 Jun 1961). Their plans call for a mixed-use development of the site including industrial, commercial/retail, and entertainment in three phases. - Start of second season Spring 1966 (?) I'm so happy to have found your site. July 23, 2020 - Nearly three years after the beloved Trotting Park was reduced to a pile of rubble, still nothing has been done with the site. Suddenly he made off like a bounding hare, ears flung back, chasing the shadow of a lowskimming gull. - Hoof Beats Magazine NEW, Mar 8, 1965 - Racing Beneath the Peaks - Sports Illustrated, Mar 10, 1965 - Clearview Stable Sweeps Weekend - Harness Horse Magazine NEW, Dec 14, 1966 - Phoenix Trotting Park Suspends Racing Indefinitely - Harness Horse Magazine, Sep 24, 1969 - Ong Hing v. Arizona Harness Raceway, Inc. - CourtListener.com, Apr 14, 1983 - Arizona Rites Held for James Dunnigan; Was Founder of Buffalo Raceway - The Sun and the Erie County Independent, Nov 15, 1991 - AutoSwap USA - Arizona Business Gazette, Dec 9, 1997 - Film Crew to Aid Birds - The Arizona Republic, Sep 21, 2006 - Goodyear's Horse Track Becomes 'White Elephant' - West Valley View, Dec 2010 - Phoenix Trotting Park History - Three Rivers Historical Society Newsletter, Oct 10, 2011 - Goodyear Trotting Park Receives Interest - West Valley View, Oct 22, 2012 - Man Injured in Fall at Goodyear Trotting Park - West Valley View, Mar 28, 2014 - The Short Life and Long Death of Phoenix Trotting Park - Harness Racing Update, Jun 18, 2014 - Readers' Picks of Biggest West Valley Eyesores - The Arizona Republic, Jan 12, 2016 - Huge Trotting Park in Goodyear Marks 50 Years Standing Empty - The Arizona Republic, Jan 14, 2016 - For $16.5 Million, You Could Own the Phoenix Trotting Park in Goodyear - The Arizona Republic, May 17, 2017 - Demolition Zone Ahead - West Valley View, May 17, 2017 - The Old Phoenix Trotting Park Set for Demolition - AZ Family 3TV / CBS 5, May 18, 2017 - All Abandoned: 8 Forbidden & Forgotten Spots around Arizona - College Times, May 20, 2017 - Iconic Phoenix Trotting Park along I-10 in Goodyear set for demolition - Arizona Republic, May 21, 2017 - Phoenix Trotting Park, an iconic horse-racing track, will be demolished - KTAR News, May 22, 2017 - Abandoned Phoenix Trotting Park scheduled to be demolished in December - FOX10 Phoenix, Jul 9, 2017 - Goodyear Police Asking People to Stay Away from Trotting Park - FOX10 Phoenix, Sep 26, 2017 - Phoenix horse trotting park set for demolition Wednesday - AZ Family 3TV / CBS 5, Sep 27, 2017 - RAW VIDEO: Aerial view of Goodyear horse trotting park demolition - AZ Family 3TV / CBS 5, Sep 27, 2017 - Facebook Live Stream of trotting park demolition - AZ Family 3TV / CBS 5, Sep 27, 2017 - Abandoned Phoenix Horse Trotting Park demolished in Goodyear - FOX10 Phoenix, Sep 27, 2017 - What is the fate of the Phoenix Trotting Park in Goodyear? Woolworth family and owner of Clearview Stables in Maine) and Delvin Miller, a harness racing Hall of Famer who was involved with the Roosevelt Raceway in Long Island[16]. This page contains a listing of print and electronic media sources that mention the Phoenix Trotting Park. I probably sounded like a raving lunatic, but I was too excited to care. The Phoenix Trotting Park was used as a filming location in the 1998 action movie "No Code of Conduct" starring Martin Sheen and Charlie Sheen and directed by glam rocker Bret Michaels. Phoenix Trotting Park could be reduced to ashes if Arizona's long-shuttered Standardbred track is sold. I was extremely amused by this piece of graffiti. Or do you use other cameras? I sent pictures to people back home and told them about where I'd just been. It was originally supposed to be built for $3 million, but after Italian architects and contractors were brought in it wound up closer to $10 million, essentially bankrupting its builder, James Dunnigan, who had operated Buffalo Raceway. [13] The track was located far outside city limits, where roads were mostly unimproved dirt. Attendees filled the beautiful grandstand to watch trotting-style racing, but not for very long. He was flying a drone into the demolition area after workers had left for the day. Only time will tell what happens to the land where Trotting Park stood, but one thing is for sure: t will be missed by many. Man Injured in Fall at Goodyear Trotting Park. Soon the thrill was gone and the 50-acre parking lot was mostly empty. [20], The Trotting Park closed permanently in 1966. Two late Hall of Famers, Norman Woolworth and Delvin Miller, were among those who helped bankroll the new venture. (www.taushpointo.com) taushawierlo@gmail.com. Earl Flora waxed poetic in the pages of Hoof Beats, noting that his trade journalist colleagues for The Horseman & Fair World and Harness Horse wished that they could paint the scene instead of relying on their typewriters. [15] Total construction time from the groundbreaking ceremony to the first race was less than 12 months. The Short Life and Long Death of Phoenix Trotting Park. Phoenix Trotting Park Suspends Racing Indefinitely, Del Miller, Legendary Driver in the Sulky, Is Dead at 83, Phoenix Trots Out A $9 Million Track With Spiral Curves, The Short Life and Long Death of Phoenix Trotting Park, Goodyear's Horse Track Becomes 'White Elephant', Motorcycle Show Phoenix/Goodyear Trotter Park 1988- PART 1, Man Injured in Fall at Goodyear Trotting Park, Phoenix Mixed-Use Project Takes a Giant Step, 224-Acre Mixed-Use Hub Proposed for Goodyear. The Phoenix Gazette, G3. Opened in 1965, it closed less than 2 years later. A Guide to the Architecture of Metro Phoenix. Beck said shed like the space to be used to build something for kids, like a waterpark, while Bowland is hopeful it will generate more business in Goodyear. Phoenix Trotting Park History. Elevation: 1250 ft. About to adventure this one myself. Sale of W.V. Phoenix Trotting Park was built twenty miles from Downtown Phoenix and only accessible by way of dirt roads, making it a chore to get to. The 194 acres that encompass the massive, abandoned horse-racing track hit the market in late December . [19] The park received a great deal of press coverage and was featured in Sports Illustrated magazine and in The New York Times. Must have made it more expensive to build, find employees and run the endeavour. Ivy Walls and Horse Stalls. [22], Around August 1993, Delaware North company gifted the Trotting Park to local Baptist college Grand Canyon University. Phoenix was terribly impressed by St. Mawr, he could not leave off staring at him. June 30, 2017 - Huge photo update! If you have race results for the Phoenix Trotting Park (a list of horses, drivers, teams and race results), such as an old magazine, please do get in touch. Welcome to Ghost Towns of Arizona and Surrounding States A ghost town is a completely abandoned or semi-abandoned town or city. Low 37F. 34 Smith, DeWayne. GCU hosted a number of small rodeo events including the Junior Rodeo and the 1993 All-Arabian Horse Society Spring Show.[34]. 27 Colliers International. Originally budgeted at $3 million, it ended up costing about $10 million. SEP 27, 2017 - AZFAMILY - RAW VIDEO: Aerial view of Goodyear horse trotting park demolition
It opened in January 1965 to a sell-out crowd. After 52 years of existence, the Trotting Park was sadly demolished in September 2017. Back in 1964, the Trotting Park was located far outside the edge of town. (22 Oct 2012). Demolition of massive Phoenix Trotting Park in Goodyear begins, 1965 article sheds light on what the Phoenix Trotting Park used to be, Demolition Under Way on Iconic Phoenix Trotting Park, The Colossal Ruins of Phoenix Trotting Park. CDR Staff | September 28, 2017 Demolition of Phoenix Trotting Park, an abandoned horse racing track in Goodyear, Arizona, recently began, a report by azcentral.com says. Senator John J. Dunnigan on Feb. 22, 1934, Trotters at the Buffalo Raceway on May 25, 1974, Re-creation of the Phoenix Trotting Park logo, Phoenix Trotting Park under construction in 1964. (27 Sep 2010). Watch as the abandoned Phoenix Trotting Park in Goodyear, Arizona is brought to the ground with one of the largest demolition machines in the world. In the early 1960s, James J. Dunnigan invested heavily in a new harness racing track called Phoenix Trotting Park, located in Arizona. Goodyear residents and leaders hoped for an entertainment destination where the iconic Phoenix Trotting Park once stood, but are more likely to see light industrial at the site off Interstate. Love Arizona? Built 20 years before the freeway, the futuristic structure has sat for more than half a century, like a spaceship that landed in the middle of the desert, evoking mystified stares of passing. There wasn't much down there, just a lot of open space and a few random fixtures. Thanks for any info! The Phoenix Trotting Park was a horse racing track built-in 1964 in Goodyear, Arizona. The Phoenix Trotting Park, was a horse racingtrack built in 1964 in Goodyear, Arizona, United States. The shell of the space-age grandstand has survived for a half-century in the dry Arizona climate although the decay is obvious even from a distance. Discovery sues Paramount over 'South Park' deal,NEW YORK (AP) Warner Bros. Still hard to believe that it's really gone. The origins of the Phoenix Trotting Park begin with the Dunnigans, an Irish-American family living in New York at the turn of the century. The large, futuristically designed structure gave an optimistic look for the 1960s. I'd read rumors of a squatter settlement in the basement and was determined to find out if there was any truth to it. Therefore, you won't be surprised by its current spooky state. Phoenix Trotting Park Abandoned. Therefore, the published date is the earliest known capture that could be located using the Wayback Machine. It was here that he purchased a 640-acre parcel near Cotton Lane Road and McDowell Road for his new harness racing track, the Phoenix Trotting Park. Wikipedia - The Free Encyclopedia. Aug 12, 2016 - The Phoenix Trotting Park, a horse racing track, was originally built in 1964 in Goodyear, Arizona. 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