Sale of Levin track

[nomates]

On 30/07/2022 at 12:13 PM, nomates said:

SA could you let us know who's manning up and what they are doing to stop being pushed around any longer ? because i have neither heard nor read of any person or persons taking measures to rectify anything that has been done to racing in the CD or prevent any more damage being done .

I hope what you say above is correct , but far too much damage has been done to ever recover into anything resembling the industry that used to exist in the district .

This was my first post to him , no knocking there .

[Chief Stipe]

27 minutes ago, Joe Bloggs said:

Can I politely ask? In the advent of a change of Government at your next election, would it not be prudent to canvass/lobby your shadow racing minister to 'change' re-write the constitution whereby the racing act with this ''land stealing'' could/would be reversed?

Would be too late by then.  You'd need to write legislation to reverse what is likely to happen in the next 14 months.  The best bet would be to lobby the Labour Minister when NZTR places land grab requests on his desk.  Assuming of course that Clubs don't roll over BEFORE it gets to that stage.

[nomates]

8 minutes ago, Chief Stipe said:

You're definitely blowing hard.  I don't see you being able to pass legislation to land grab BOAY.  Also knowing what I know about the identity of the Special Agent I can assure you they definitely are in a position to initiate some action.

But the point is why knock them down even if they are a "blow hard"?  Isn't their intention exactly what YOU want?

Fuck me , you can be obtuse sometimes , read my previous post . SA started the knocking , we only asked for some insight into what might be going on .

This is my last word on this with you . 

[Reefton]

48 minutes ago, Freda said:

The Nats offered very little resistance to the 'Act' - and they could have - so I doubt whether a change to the logical 'other side ' would achieve much.  Hope I'm wrong though.

They claim(Maureen Pugh told me this) that they got the community consultation/mediation clauses inserted into the Act and the requirement to take into account the community contribution to and use of facilities.  I don't even know if they are there or not but the DIA certainly wanted submissions on the process a few months back.

The Nats probably think that racing is an irrelevance in the modern age and why waste their time on opposing strongly an Act that would reap them eff all votes anyway(a fair enough conclusion).  And of course(and I do not know this) McKelvie their racing spokesman - now resigning - is a very wealthy farmer so who knows if the Waikato mafia was in his ear.

National, like them or not(and I do), is not going to be the saviour of NZ racing.  And nor is racing going to have any sort of priority if and when they get back in.  While in the old days the Southland Farmer typically had a dozen mares or active racehorses those days are long gone and they are all old men now.  Nobody really wants to listen to them and their influence is rapidly fading.  The young farmers are more concerned about how the mortgage is going to get paid than whether the local goat track is sold up.

[Joe Bloggs]

11 minutes ago, Reefton said:

They claim(Maureen Pugh told me this) that they got the community consultation/mediation clauses inserted into the Act and the requirement to take into account the community contribution to and use of facilities.  I don't even know if they are there or not but the DIA certainly wanted submissions on the process a few months back.

The Nats probably think that racing is an irrelevance in the modern age and why waste their time on opposing strongly an Act that would reap them eff all votes anyway(a fair enough conclusion).  And of course(and I do not know this) McKelvie their racing spokesman - now resigning - is a very wealthy farmer so who knows if the Waikato mafia was in his ear.

National, like them or not(and I do), is not going to be the saviour of NZ racing.  And nor is racing going to have any sort of priority if and when they get back in.  While in the old days the Southland Farmer typically had a dozen mares or active racehorses those days are long gone and they are all old men now.  Nobody really wants to listen to them and their influence is rapidly fading.  The young farmers are more concerned about how the mortgage is going to get paid than whether the local goat track is sold up.

Therein lays the difference tween NZ and Oz, as the VIC Racing Minister said recently  '' we recognise the significant contribution racing brings to Victoria and it's people'' both financial and through employment. It's huge, we are talking billions of dollars to the VIC GOV.

 NSW is same and the other states are not far behind. The gambling culture which was intrinsic in the very evolution of racing when King Charles instigated stakes racing on the New Market heath back in the 1700's,  is responsible for our very existence,  as racing and it's thousands of taxpaying participants and employees contribute in so many ways.

NZ for whatever reason, [sadly NO bookmakers....we don't count Petone as bookmakers, they should be arrested for impersonating same]  never evolved and expanded, hence the lack of interest with young folk.

The syndicators here are run off their feet, so many young people are buying shares in horses, it's booming, NZ is going the other way, it's a culture problem, and with close to 800k Kiwis moving to Australia a new culture evolved in NZ, across all aspects of life, it has to, when people vote with their feet, it leaves behind a demographic, those that are content with their lot, and those that aren't but are not in position to change, and that causes problems within itself.

[Chief Stipe]

Levin Racing Club to consider transferring assets and joining RACE

 

Levin Racing Club is considering ceding outright ownership of possibly the biggest plot of bare land left in town.

The LRC committee has called a Special General Meeting of members to decide whether to transfer ownership of its entire land holdings to RACE Inc, a corporate amalgamation of Manawatū, Marton, Feilding, Rangitikei and Wellington Racing Clubs.

Levin Racing Club is asset-rich, owning freehold title to more than 120 acres of prime land on Mako Mako Road where racehorses are trained. It also has $1 million in cash reserves.

Club members are being asked to vote whether or not to join RACE and transfer all land assets to RACE Inc.

A condition of joining RACE would see the racecourse leased back to LRC as a training hub, however its viability would be under periodic review.

LRC president Bruce McCarrison said the club was under pressure to amalgamate as the code's governing body New Zealand Thoroughbred Racing (NZTR) pushes a centralisation model.

Levin Track Trust Chairman Bruce McCarrison.

He said the motivation for pursuing the relationship with RACE came from discussions with NZTR more than a year ago that the club could face the possibility of an enforced sale.

"NZTR has spoken to us about it and basically said make a decision or we will," he said.

 

"They see assets not being utilised to their full potential. There are too many tracks for the number of horses, and that includes training tracks. It's seen as dead money."

 

McCarrison said he was acting on a mandate he received at the club's Annual General Meeting last year to enter discussions with RACE and negotiate terms.

 

He said the proposal would guarantee the training track's immediate future and under the partnership LRC would have two seats on the RACE board.

 

As part of the deal the LRC plans to transfer $500,000 from its $1 million of cash reserves to its subsidiary Levin Track Operating Trust for day-to-day management of the training centre.

 

LRC had received guidance from former RACE chief executive Alisdair Roberston in negotiations with RACE, he said.

 

McCarrison said the club hadn't obtained a current market valuation of its landholdings, but his estimate was $10 million "at least".

 

The club currently held three annual licenced race meetings at the Ōtaki-Māori Racing Club's racecourse. Those meetings could be held at Trentham or Awapuni in future under the RACE partnership, he said.

 

It wasn't the first time that LRC members had been asked to cede ownership. In 2006 a majority of members voted heavily against a motion to sell out when its track and landholdings were estimated to be worth $4 million.

 

LRC's membership was in decline for a number of years, although there had been a recent 

surge in interest with the club receiving 35 membership applications in the last few months - albeit some were lapsed subscriptions.

In a May club newsletter McCarrison said he was concerned by a heightened interest in membership and new members would not have voting rights at the SGM.

Since then the committee's position had changed and new members could now vote at the SGM. Not all membership applications were accepted, however.

The motion would need a 75 per cent majority vote of members to pass under the club's constitution, he said.

The notice of the SGM first appeared on July 1 calling for a meeting on July 24. The meeting had since been rescheduled to 11am, August 21, at Levin Cosmopolitan Club.

There had been a request for audited copies of all club accounts, copies of trust deeds from all LRC's subsidiaries, and copies of the draft agreements with RACE to be provided to members prior to the SGM.

The new stalls at Levin racecourse have room for 120 horses.

 

Levin Racing Club was once the poster club for rural New Zealand Racing with a midweek meeting in the early 1980s that boasted the third-highest on-course turnover of any meeting in the country.

 

The course was closed as a racing venue in the early 1990s.

 

In 2008 the club formed a trust and partnered with a development company to build 50 villas on the old racecourse car park, with the intention that profits and an annual return be used to subsidise and safeguard the track as an equine training venue.

The club had recently invested more than $700,000 on 120 new tie-up stalls at the course.

 

 

[Mark D]

I'm told the result of the Special General meeting was - 24 votes to join RACE 36 against

[nomates]

6 minutes ago, Mark D said:

I'm told the result of the Special General meeting was - 24 votes to join RACE 36 against

I am surprised it was that close , obvious divide now , will the losing voters leave it at this ? hopefully , but it sounded like the president and vice are on the side of handing it over , is their position now untenable ?

The ball is now in NZTR's court , it will be interesting to see if they have the heart for a legal battle knowing LRC have the finances to fight them . 

 

[Chief Stipe]

30 minutes ago, Mark D said:

I'm told the result of the Special General meeting was - 24 votes to join RACE 36 against

@Special Agent I imagine voted AGAINST.  At last some grass roots action.

[Reefton]

On 12/08/2022 at 5:35 PM, Chief Stipe said:

 

"NZTR has spoken to us about it and basically said make a decision or we will," he said.

To paraphrase that 'Either you give everything you have to RACE or we will force you to give everything you have to RACE'

I hope the resurgence in members(including presumably SA) is successful in giving the one fingered salute to NZTR

Edited August 23, 2022 by Reefton

[nomates]

3 hours ago, Reefton said:

To paraphrase that 'Either you give everything you have to RACE or we will force you to give everything you have to RACE'

I hope the resurgence in members(including presumably SA) is successful in giving the one fingered salute to NZTR

I'm sure he has and good on all that voted for keeping the track , the worry i see is the 40% of members that voted to hand the track over . That is much higher than i would have expected . When the club had to deal with the same issue 20 years ago i don't remember exactly the numbers but it was very small that voted to hand it over .

The next move will be interesting . 

[Reefton]

1 hour ago, nomates said:

I'm sure he has and good on all that voted for keeping the track , the worry i see is the 40% of members that voted to hand the track over . That is much higher than i would have expected . When the club had to deal with the same issue 20 years ago i don't remember exactly the numbers but it was very small that voted to hand it over .

The next move will be interesting . 

I guess 20 years ago Levin was still racing on its own track and quite happily so.  Now that 40% are probably thinking the status quo is a bit uninteresting and no doubt have been promised the earth about the benefits that will come of RACE and that the Levin track will be protected and God knows what.  Once they are hooked into RACE the story might well be a hell of a lot different especially if there is a cool $10m plus asset sitting there wanting to be plundered by the RACE hierarchy.

The North Canterbury Racing Club were probably once led up the garden path in a similar way about the benefits of tying themselves into Riccarton.  Not only did mismanagement shut their track down(and nearly kill someone) but now the Club doesn't even own its own track and in any case the track is going to be sold off for the major benefit of the CJC 

 

[curious]

2 hours ago, nomates said:

I'm sure he has and good on all that voted for keeping the track , the worry i see is the 40% of members that voted to hand the track over . That is much higher than i would have expected . When the club had to deal with the same issue 20 years ago i don't remember exactly the numbers but it was very small that voted to hand it over .

The next move will be interesting . 

Still along way from the 75% of votes required to carry the motion. Was always going to be a dead duck.

[Huey]

2 hours ago, nomates said:

I'm sure he has and good on all that voted for keeping the track , the worry i see is the 40% of members that voted to hand the track over . That is much higher than i would have expected . When the club had to deal with the same issue 20 years ago i don't remember exactly the numbers but it was very small that voted to hand it over .

The next move will be interesting . 

I thought it would be higher 60% about right for the suckers that believe all they hype .

[Doomed]

31 minutes ago, Reefton said:

I guess 20 years ago Levin was still racing on its own track and quite happily so.  Now that 40% are probably thinking the status quo is a bit uninteresting and no doubt have been promised the earth about the benefits that will come of RACE and that the Levin track will be protected and God knows what.  Once they are hooked into RACE the story might well be a hell of a lot different especially if there is a cool $10m plus asset sitting there wanting to be plundered by the RACE hierarchy.

The North Canterbury Racing Club were probably once led up the garden path in a similar way about the benefits of tying themselves into Riccarton.  Not only did mismanagement shut their track down(and nearly kill someone) but now the Club doesn't even own its own track and in any case the track is going to be sold off for the major benefit of the CJC 

 

I think Levin "left home" even longer than 20 years ago. I do recall attending some Levin meetings in the 80s but seem to recall they may already have been at Otaki in the 90s. They used to race about this time of the year and the track was often in pretty good condition.

[nomates]

35 minutes ago, Reefton said:

I guess 20 years ago Levin was still racing on its own track and quite happily so.  Now that 40% are probably thinking the status quo is a bit uninteresting and no doubt have been promised the earth about the benefits that will come of RACE and that the Levin track will be protected and God knows what.  Once they are hooked into RACE the story might well be a hell of a lot different especially if there is a cool $10m plus asset sitting there wanting to be plundered by the RACE hierarchy.

The North Canterbury Racing Club were probably once led up the garden path in a similar way about the benefits of tying themselves into Riccarton.  Not only did mismanagement shut their track down(and nearly kill someone) but now the Club doesn't even own its own track and in any case the track is going to be sold off for the major benefit of the CJC 

 

LRC was in the Horowhenua Consortium with OMRC when i arrived in Levin 28 years ago . Race definitely intended to sell the track if they got hold of it 20+ years ago and whilst they were going to lease the track back to LRC this time it was on short term leases from what i can gather , the intention would always be to sell sooner rather than later once they got their hands on it .

We will see whether NZTR are now going to flex their muscle .

[Reefton]

2 hours ago, nomates said:

LRC was in the Horowhenua Consortium with OMRC when i arrived in Levin 28 years ago . Race definitely intended to sell the track if they got hold of it 20+ years ago and whilst they were going to lease the track back to LRC this time it was on short term leases from what i can gather , the intention would always be to sell sooner rather than later once they got their hands on it .

We will see whether NZTR are now going to flex their muscle .

yes it will be interesting