City Council Sets April 17 For Dixon Downs Election

It’s Official, Dixon Downs Racetrack Proposal Headed for Public Vote

Dixon Downs Headed for Ballot.

Dixon May Fair Board Votes to Support Dixon Downs Race Track,

Also Seeks Satellite Wagering Facility

Dixon Downs Likely to be

Placed on Special Election Ballot

Dixon Downs a Dead Deal

The approvals for MEC's Dixon lands for racing and adjacent commercial uses were put to a local referendum on April 17, 2007. MEC's proposal lost at the referendum.

Magna Entertainment Corporation (MEC) and Campbell Corporation agreed Friday afternoon (March 9) to a settlement of a suit brought by Campbell's over the potential traffic problems the MEC Dixon Down's racetrack would cause.

Campbell's has a tomato processing plant on Pedrick Road just a short distance from the proposed track. Campbell's was concerned the traffic drawn to the area by the race track would create a hazard for the trucks hauling tomatoes to its plant during harvest season.

Dixon, CA The Dixon City Clerk has officially announced that all four petitions opposing the Dixon Downs racetrack have sufficient signatures. At its next meeting on January 9, 2007, the City Council must either rescind the Resolutions and Ordinances approving the project, or set a date for a special election for a public vote on the issues.

Dixon Citizens for Quality Growth (DCQG), the local group which submitted the petitions against Dixon Downs, announced Friday, January 5, that it received notification from the City Clerk that all four petitions are certified.

Since the year 2000, when Magna Entertainment Corporation first approached the Dixon City Council about building a horse racetrack and a three-story betting parlor in the Northeast quadrant, DCQG has requested a vote by the citizens of Dixon on the issue. The group noted that FOUR different times in the past six years, the City Council has refused to authorize such a vote . Through the Referendum process, the citizens will get to vote on what they want in their city.

DCQG congratulated the volunteers who gathered the signatures and the citizens who signed the petitions.

"They are all a credit to the City of Dixon," said Gale Preston, a DCQG spokesman, " Despite the cold, rain, daylight savings, Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays, the Circulators gathered double the number of signatures required by the Election Code. Both the two Resolution petitions and the two Ordinance petitions were turned in to the Dixon City Clerk well ahead of the due date. Without exception, the Circulators reported they were received with open arms by the people eager to sign the petitions giving them the right to vote to keep the racetrack out of Dixon."

For further information call the Rosenberger’s at 678-1274 or the Preston’s at 693-0642 and visit the recently updated website:

www.dumpthedowns.org.

Persons supporting the project may contact the Magna Entertainment (Dixon Downs) office at 275 N. First Street in Dixon. Phone 693-9420. Their website is:

http://www.dixondowns.com

Opponents of the Dixon Downs Racetrack announced Monday they have filed the final two petitions to place the issue on a special election ballot. Four separate petitions were required because the City Council had to adopt four separate actions to allow Dixon Downs to proceed.

The group, Dixon Citizens for Quality Growth (DCQG), had previously filed the first two referendum petitions, protesting adoption of two resolutions by the City Council had over twice the 700 signatures required.

The last two petitions protest the adoption of two ordinances on November 14, 2006. One ordinance rezones the property and the other adopts a development agreement.

In a press release issued Monday, December 11, the group stated the second signature gathering campaign went "very smoothly, especially considering that circulation began in earnest following Thanksgiving, and occurred at the height of shopping and preparations for the Christmas holiday season." 

Dixon May Fair officials have gone on record as "strongly supporting" the Dixon Downs horsetrack project and are also seeking a satellite wagering facility on the fairgrounds that could be operable as early as next year.

"The Dixon Downs will generate a tremendous amount of money for the fair industry," said Hendrick Crowell, president of the 36th District Association Board of Directors, also known as the Dixon May Fair board. "We unanimously support Dixon Downs and we are unanimously in favor of a satellite wagering facility on our grounds."

California's horse racing industry, from private tracks (such as Golden Gate Fields and Santa Anita Racetrack) to county fairs, financially supports the state's fair industry, generating between $24 to $28 million a year. Last year the Dixon May Fair received a $150,000 allotment from the California Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA) through the horse racing industry to operate the fair. The 132nd annual Dixon May Fair, the oldest in California, will open May 10 for a four-day run.

"As costs rise, we have to be vigilant about exploring any and all opportunities that will help us reach our goals of serving the community, serving the youth and protecting the character, nature and tradition of the fair," Crowell said at the November meeting.  "We have a duty to ensure the viability of the fair. We are in favor of satellite wagering and we support Dixon Downs."

The state's fairs receive no general fund support; they must rely on horse racing to supplement their budgets.

Crowell said the city of Dixon stands to benefit from horse racing, as 33 1/100 of one percent will go into the city coffers.   "The Dixon May Fair," he said, "has a long tradition of supporting horse racing. We were the first fair in the state to offer pari-mutuel horse racing."

Dixon May Fair board vice president Richard Hamilton said "If we lose racing, that would leave a big hole in our budget. This (supporting Dixon Downs and operating a satellite wagering facility) is a real investment in funding us." As old race tracks are removed, new ones must replace them, the board agreed.

The highly successful Dixon May Fair, which draws big name entertainers such as Faith Hill, Willie Nelson, Carrie Underwood and Sammy Hagar, is landlocked within the city and has no room to grow, Hamilton said. "The fair faces a tremendous amount of pressures including weather to make the Dixon May Fair both a public and financial success. The fair's success represents an overwhelming part of the revenue that the 36th District Agricultural Association needs to keep the fairgrounds open year around. Having a satellite wagering facility and the potential to get racing dates could secure the Dixon May Fair in the future."

"If the Dixon May Fair moved its fair activities to Dixon Downs," Hamilton said, "this doesn't necessarily mean the fairgrounds will be sold, but it does open up several opportunities for both the fair and the city of Dixon on how we could use the current fairgrounds to the betterment of the city and county."

Dixon Downs can mean a more successful Solano County Fair, the Dixon May Fair board agreed. Attendance and financial problems have plagued the Solano County Fair over the past several years. The Solano County Fair, once a 13-day fair, recently shortened its 10-day fair to five days for the 2007 season and moved a week of its horse-racing schedule to the Sonoma County Fair.

Once the troubled Solano County Fair moves half of its racing dates to Sonoma County, "Solano County may never regain them and this could eventually lead to being out of the racing business," Hamilton said.

"If there is ever an option, both the Dixon May Fair and the Solano County Fair could relocate on the 260-acre Dixon Downs site, offering benefits for everyone."

Dixon Downs, the board agreed, could easily host the racing schedules of the Solano County Fair and the Dixon May Fair. "Together the two fairs could offer four weeks of horse racing in Solano County, plus the Dixon Downs' races," Hamilton said. "The city of Dixon and county would greatly benefit with the potential of over six weeks of racing through the year."

Ester Armstrong, chief executive officer of the fair and a past director of the state's Division of Fairs and Expositions, explained that fairs have been an integral part of the horse racing industry since the 1860s, when fairs first conducted organized racing.

Following the Great Depression, the fairs needed state revenues, she said, and pari-mutuel betting provided the funds. "That set the stage for creating the link between fairs and racing activities," she said.

The California Horse Racing Act of 1933, ratified two to one by a referendum of the electorate, legalized pari-mutuel betting on horse racing and "established a special account in state government funded by a portion of betting receipts to support the fairs," she said. It encouraged agriculture and provided a means to generate income for the California's fair system. Today, not only live racing but off-track wagering at satellite wagering facilities generate horse-racing income for the fairs. In fact, wagering at the satellite facilities now surpasses the amount generated by live wagering.

The CDFA serves as the steward of these funds, "ensuring their appropriate use and monitoring the fairs' adherence to sound fiscal policies," Armstrong said.

The Dixon May Fair officials pointed out that in these tight fiscal times, fairs place no burden on the state's general fund, and in fact, CDFA oversight and fund management roles are funded entirely from racing income.

The board also noted that the state experiences a "huge economic return" from fair activities statewide. A CDFA report issued in June by Secretary A. G. Kawamura indicates that the $24 to $28 million generated for fairs by the horse racing industry serves as "a strong foundation" for the fairs.

In 2002, the overall impact of spending by all participants at fairtime and interim events resulted in a total economic impact on California of $2.5 billion. Jobs created by fairs through direct employment and multiplier impacts reached nearly 28,000 in 2002.

State and local governments collect an estimated $136 million in tax revenues from fair-related activities annually.

The Dixon May Fair board also pointed out that fairgrounds, thanks in part to horse racing funds, are an invaluable resource during emergencies such as earthquakes, floods, fires and other natural or unnatural disasters. The Dixon fairgrounds serve as a base for helping down-and-out military veterans and for organizing fire crews to fight fires.

The proposed satellite wagering facility must first be approved by the Division of Fairs and Expositions and the California Horse Racing Board. Once authorized, a building would be erected on the grounds.

The Dixon City Council last month approved the Dixon Downs horseracing project, to be built by Magna Entertainment Corp. A group known as the Dixon Citizens for Quality Growth is collecting signatures to place the issue on the ballot.

At stake is not only the future of Dixon Downs, the board agreed, but the future of the Dixon May Fair and the Solano County Fair.  "It could mark the end of horse racing in Solano County," Hamilton said.

Crowell, a resident of Suisun City, and Hamilton, from Rio Vista, head the eight member board: Sandy Bonesteel, Roy Gill and Jill Bors of Dixon; Abraham Bautista of Fairfield; Dr. Hoe Poh of Benicia; and Garland Porter of Vacaville.

Placed on Special Election Ballot

DIXON, CA - Soon after the Dixon City Council took the last steps to permit the construction of the Dixon Downs Horse Racetrack and Entertainment Center Project, opponents of the proposal began signature gathering to force a vote of the people on the issue.

Two ordinances, the rezone and the Development Agreement were adopted after the second reading. The ordinances will become effective in 30 days unless enough signatures are gather for their repeal by referenda.

A "community sign-in" is planned for Saturday and Sunday November 18 and 19. Registered voters who want to be able to express themselves on this issue are encouraged to visit the tables which will be set up at Java California, 1440 Ary Lane from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. (both days) to sign the petitions. Another mass signing is planned for the following weekend.

The Council approved amendments to the General Plan and the Northeast Quadrant Specific Plan on October 23. DCQG immediately began circulating petitions for a vote on those actions and expects to submit them to the City Clerk later this week. Only 700 signatures are required but DCQG estimates that the Petitions, when submitted, will have in excess of 1,200 signatures.

According to Gail Preston, a spokesman of DCQG, the first two petitions had 1427 signatures on each. Because the City passed four separate actions required for Dixon Downs, each of those four actions require a separate referendum petition to be placed on the ballot.

The Dixon Downs issue was the subject of a detailed Environmental Impact Report and other special studies ordered by the City. These reports found there were nineteen (19) unavoidable significant environmental effects, and many other probable negative effects on the City of Dixon and its Fundamental Goals as given in the current General Plan.

Over 3,000 Dixon residents, most of them registered voters, sent letters to the Mayor, the City Council, and the Planning Commission expressing their opposition to the racetrack. It is believed that most of the people in Dixon do not want the racetrack. The contributions and offers of help in various other ways support that belief. Sufficient signatures on the Resolutions were collected relatively quickly and DCQG expects the collection of signatures on the Ordinance Petitions to go smoothly.

When the County Registrar of Voters verifies that sufficient signatures have been filed, the City Council will meet, presumably at their next regular meeting on November 30^th,.to decide whether to repeal their previous actions or set a date for an election.

The council may decide either to rescind their action or place both of the qualified items on a special election ballot some 88 to 120 days from the date of this hearing. As Councilman Smith stated at the last council meeting that the council did their job and now it is time for the citizens to do theirs, it appears that recession of the 4 actions giving Dixon Downs their entitlements will not occur. Smith voted in favor of the project as did all others but Councilman Steve Alexander.

Gail Preston, one spokesman for DCQG, analyzed the results of the last election to determine support for the measures. Considering that Gil Vega and Jack Batchelor, both proponents of the track, probably were endorsed by voters on that basis with Batchelor receiving approximately 1800 votes, Preston figures that 4400 people voted with an approximate 60% majority voting for anti-track candidates.

At 3:30 thirty Thursday afternoon a small group of people gathered preparing to qualify two referenda for a future vote on Dixon Downs. With over 1400 signatures gathered in 3 weeks, and only 700 valid registered voters’ signatures required.

Meanwhile, Campbell's Soup Company has indicated it may take legal action to either stop the racetrack development or require that the portions of Pedrick Road from I-80 to Vaughn Road be upgraded. Campbell's has a tomato processing plant on the East side of Pedrick Road across from the racetrack site. Campbell's argues that the Environmental Impact Report showed the racetrack would create traffic problems for trucks accessing Campbell's plant, and that the development agreement between the City and Dixon Down's did not address that problem.

The City of Davis has also indicated it may take legal action due to traffic impacts at the railroad station in Davis.

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