ALTOONA, IA – In a meeting between representatives from Iowa’s Thoroughbred and Quarter Horse owners, breeders and trainers and Prairie Meadows management, Iowa horsemen were given a tentative target date from Prairie Meadows CEO Gary Palmer.

“At Prairie Meadows, we care deeply about the health and well-being of our family of employees, our guests, the horsemen, and our community,” said Prairie CEO Palmer. “This is a position in which we have been steadfast since deciding to close our full operation before any other casino in our state. As we continue our vigilant work on preparing our property for its eventual reopening, I’m reminded just how committed our team is in overcoming this horrible pandemic. While there is no playbook for this challenge, I am confident that our men and women at Prairie Meadows will rise above it and soon welcome back our employees, guests, horsemen, and community – safely.”

According to statement release by the Iowa HBPA:

Today at 2:00pm, HBPA President Dave McShane, HBPA VP Jeff Hartz, and HBPA VP Maria Pauly, along with the Quarter Horse President Tom Lepic, had a phone call discussion with Gary Palmer, Prairie Meadows’ Racing staff, and a few other staff from Prairie Meadows about the upcoming race meet.

During our discussion Prairie Meadows said it was their hope to have the casino open by June 15th to July 1st. They also said they are planning on opening the backside three weeks prior to the casino opening.

In a similar statement from the Quarter Horse Racing Association president Lepic, he added:

I asked the Prairie Meadows Board to realize the Governor’s proclamation was two-fold. One, she gave us permission to race without fans but in order to do that we need to get the backside open as soon as possible so horses from around the country, who are in need of a track to go to could begin moving to Prairie Meadows.

I explained even if they were not going to approve racing in the immediate future, we needed to open the backside so horses could train, get their mandatory works and be ready to race when it was permitted.

I also explained by not opening the backside now, we were going to lose a lot of horses to other tracks who we might not get back when we do open. Others also spoke, some in favor of the Governor’s proclamation and some opposed.

Now that a tentative opening date has been reached, there is still much that needs to be to get the meet ready.

All stakeholders will need to determine the purse structure for the coming meet and and how that will impact next year’s season. Purses at Prairie Meadows are derived from prior year’s casino revenue.  While the purse account for the 2020 season is set, there is a naturally anticipated shortfall in revenue this year with the extended casino closure which will adversely affect the 2021 purse structure.  All sides will try and find a way to provide stability to the purse structure with the challenges that impact the account.

Any changes will need to be approved by the IA HBPA Board of Directors, the Iowa Racing and Gaming Commission, as well as the IA Quarter Horse Association  for their portion of the meet.

Discussions for the opening of the 2020 season are expected to start next week.