Connections to Community (Integrating Pimlico Race Course Into a Renewed Community Vision)

Abstract

Historic Pimlico Race Course holds many distinctions as a time honored American landmark whose life spans three centuries and many noteworthy events. It is the crowning jewel to a vibrant and historic Maryland thoroughbred industry as the home to the Preakness Stakes. Pimlico embodies the truest sense of a rural Maryland identity within the context of its most urban city. Pimlico Race Course is in the northwest quadrant of Baltimore City adjacent to the Park Heights neighborhood. Once a vibrant immigrant community, today it is home to a struggling predominantly African American community suffocated by crime, drugs, and a high degree of housing and property vacancies. This thesis asserts that Pimlico must become an asset to its neighbors. To survive and revitalize, a new Pimlico must become an active participant in the community through the integration of a program conducive to its business, the culture of horseracing, and the community.