Multnomah Greyhound Park

Multnomah Greyhound Park
Location Wood Village, Oregon
Coordinates 45°31′52″N 122°25′52″W / 45.531027°N 122.431083°W / 45.531027; -122.431083Coordinates: 45°31′52″N 122°25′52″W / 45.531027°N 122.431083°W / 45.531027; -122.431083
Date opened 1957
Date closed 2004
Race type Greyhound

Multnomah Greyhound Park is a disused dog track located in Wood Village, Oregon, part of the Portland metropolitan area. Opened in 1957, it was named Fairview Park until 1978.

History

Greyhound racing in the Portland metropolitan area began in 1933, organized by the Multnomah Kennel Club (MKC)[1][2] and held at Multnomah Stadium[1] (now the site of Jeld-Wen Field). In 1956, dog racing moved to Portland Meadows,[3] after the stadium's owners notified MKC that the club would have to find a new venue, to make room at the stadium for the Portland Beavers baseball team, which was set to relocate from Vaughn Street Park.[4] Greyhound races were only held at Portland Meadows – which was primarily a horse racing track – for one season, the 1956 season (Aug. 13–Oct. 17, 1956).

In January 1956, MKC purchased a 90-acre (36 ha) site in Wood Village, Oregon, with plans to build a new dog track and stadium there.[5] The new dedicated greyhound racing track opened in 1957[2][6] and was originally named Fairview Park, but in 1978 it was renamed Murray Kemp Greyhound Park in honor of MKC's founder and longtime president.[7] In 1991, the name was changed to Multnomah Greyhound Park.

1987 would mark the track's record season for attendance with 611,430; after the 1987 season the Multnomah Kennel Club would claim that greyhound racing was "the number one spectator sport in the state."[6] Throughout the 1990s, the track's attendance would continue on a steady decline. In December 2004, the track's owner, Magna Entertainment, refused to renew their lease on the building. This would mark the end of use for Multnomah Greyhound Park and the end of greyhound racing in Oregon.[6] The track would go to great lengths to try to ensure that all remaining greyhounds were adopted and sold for an average of $175 each to avoid greyhound homelessness.[8]

Within months of the park's closure, two businessmen from Lake Oswego proposed a $490-million casino and entertainment complex to be built on the site.[9] A ballot measure to authorize the plan was defeated in 2010 with 68 percent of voters opposed.[10] Two ballot measures (Measures 82 and 83) which would have allowed building of a casino at the park were both soundly defeated in November 2012.

In October of 2015, "the Grand Ronde tribal confederation announced it was purchasing the defunct greyhound racetrack in Wood Village, sparking new speculation about whether a casino could end up on the site." [11]

The track

The track's max capacity is 18,760 people with a seating capacity of 6,064.[12] The track's length is 1,382.5 feet and is made of sand from the Columbia River. The kennel area has a maximum capacity of 840 greyhounds.

Other uses

Team Oregon conducts motorcycle safety training in a portion of the parking lot and the former kennels.[13]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 "Dogs Stage Trials on Stadium Track: Portland Gets First Look at Greyhound Racing". The Oregonian. May 17, 1933. Section 2, p. 1.
  2. 1 2 Gregory, L. H. (July 14, 1957). "Greg's Gossip [regular column by newspaper's Sports Editor]". The Oregonian. Section 2, p. 1. delete character in |title= at position 15 (help)
  3. ↑ "Hounds Go At Meadows". The Oregonian. August 27, 1956. Section 2, p. 5.
  4. ↑ Turner, Wallace (July 13, 1955). "Proposed For Center". The Oregonian. p. 1.
  5. ↑ "Dog Club Buys Wood Village's 90-Acre Tract". The Oregonian. January 6, 1956. p. 1.
  6. 1 2 3 "History of Greyhound Racing in Oregon" (PDF). Retrieved 2010-12-23.
  7. ↑ McLeod (August 17, 1978). "MKC track to be renamed". The Oregonian. p. C4.
  8. ↑ "Closing Racetrack Leaves Greyhounds Homeless". Retrieved 2010-12-24.
  9. ↑ "Developers eye dog track for nontribal casino". Lewiston Tribune. AP. March 13, 2005. Retrieved 2012-06-07.
  10. ↑ Wells, Shannon (November 2, 2010). "State voters deliver definitive ‘no’ to Wood Village casino". Portland Tribune. Retrieved 2012-06-07.
  11. ↑ http://www.oregonlive.com/mapes/index.ssf/2015/10/grand_ronde_tribe_purchases_fo.html
  12. ↑ "Multnomah Greyhound Park". Retrieved 2010-12-23.
  13. ↑ http://teamoregon.orst.edu/TO_Web/brt.html
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