Ferndale grandstand needs $1 million in repairs due to earthquake damage

The grandstand at the Humboldt County Fair in Ferndale, Calif., has been deemed unsafe because of recent earthquake damage and will need $1 million in emergency repairs before the start of county fair in late August, according to published reports in Northern California.

Larry Swartzlander, the executive director of the California Authority of Racing Fairs, told the California Horse Racing Board at its monthly meeting on Thursday that Humboldt fair executives have hired a contractor who can complete the seismic safety work by the first of August.

Swartzlander said that if repairs cannot be completed that the public can be accommodated in temporary tents during the race meeting.

The fair is scheduled to run a six-day meeting from Aug. 18-27 on a Friday-through-Sunday basis.

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“We’ve identified a contractor that will do the work,” Swartzlander told the board. “We have a contingency if we could not use the grandstand to accommodate the racing.”

The racing board approved the license for the Humboldt county fair meeting along with licenses for two other summertime fair meetings, and a six-week meeting at Golden Gate Fields from late August to early September.

Racing will be held over three weeks at Cal-Expo in Sacramento on a Friday-through-Sunday basis from July 14 to July 30. First post times have been moved to 3:45 p.m. Pacific in an attempt to take advantage of cooler weather in late afternoon, Swartzlander said.

The Sonoma County Fair meeting at Santa Rosa will be held over a seven-day period from Aug. 3-6 and Aug. 11-13.

Golden Gate Fields has altered its weekly racing schedule to race on a Saturday-through-Monday basis from Aug. 23 to Oct. 3, eliminating Friday racing.

Track general manager David Duggan told the racing board that a move to Monday racing will shift Golden Gate Fields away from a crowded simulcast market on Fridays. He said the new schedule is an experiment.

“I feel it will be a positive move forward,” he said. “With six Mondays, we’ll be able to provide a fair comparison.”

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