The leader of Elmbridge borough council, which has planning responsibility for Sandown Park in Esher, said on Wednesday he has had “no contact at all” from the Jockey Club either before or after it announced plans to turn the course into a “super-track” using cash from the proposed sale of Kempton for housing. Stuart Selleck, who took over as leader in May last year, also stressed that plans to redevelop Sandown will be subject to strict local planning laws, as the course is situated on green belt land.
The Jockey Club hopes to stage the King George VI Chase, the highlight of Kempton’s season, at nearby Sandown Park if its controversial scheme to sell Kempton for property development proceeds as planned. The course will require significant investment in the track and facilities to do so, however, as Sandown’s current maximum crowd is around 16,000 while Kempton regularly attracts more than 20,000 to the King George on Boxing Day.
The development required to bring Sandown up to the standard the Jockey Club has promised, as well as accommodating the bigger crowds that a “super-track” would need to attract, would place significant extra strain on the surrounding roads and infrastructure. Any new building work, meanwhile, even if it follows the “footprint” of previous structures, would be subject to strict regulation and could well be opposed by local residents.
“I’ve no idea what their plan is for Sandown Park, whether they are likely to build more or refurbish what they’ve got,” Selleck, who is a regular racegoer at Kempton’s “twilight” Flat meetings, said on Wednesday.
“Whether they have been in contact with our planning department I wouldn’t know but they haven’t made any approach to the council via me on any sort of ideas they may wish to bring forward. I’m working on rumours as much as anybody else.
“We have a major problem with traffic in the whole of Surrey, not just in Esher. There are big issues with what you can and cannot do on green belt land and, even if a plan is accepted by the local council, it would still need to be referred to the secretary of state.
“Nothing is going to get waved through because it is on green belt and it will need to adhere to all the policies relating to green belt development. It will not be waved through in any shape or form.”
The “super-track” plan for Sandown is one of two main projects that the Jockey Club insists will depend on raising at least £100m from the sale of Kempton for housing. The Jockey Club also wants to build a new all-weather track in Newmarket and says it will add to prize money at its tracks over and above what would have been on offer without the loss of Kempton.
Kempton itself is believed to be the third-most profitable track in the Jockey Club’s portfolio, however, after the principal jumping venues of Cheltenham and Aintree. It is also a much-loved venue, rich in history, having seen such all-time greats as Arkle, Kauto Star and Desert Orchid entering its winner’s enclosure.
The Club’s plans have been poorly received by many racing fans while both Spelthorne borough council, where Kempton is located, and an overwhelming majority of residents are also believed to be bitterly opposed to the track’s redevelopment.
The plans to bulldoze Kempton were announced in early January, two days before the close of a statutory “call for sites” in Spelthorne for possible redevelopment, and took both the council and racing fans by surprise.
The lack of contact with Sandown’s local planning authority, despite the track’s significance in the Jockey Club’s overall scheme, adds to the impression of a “now-or-never” decision to cash in on the immense value of the Kempton site. The latest estimates of land value produced by the Department for Communities and Local Government are now more than a year out of date, but suggest that the 200 acres of land that the Club says will be sold for housing would be worth at least £400m.
Might Bite, who fell at the last fence at Kempton with a Grade One race at his mercy in December, will attempt to put that experience behind him when he returns to action in a novice chase at Doncaster on Thursday.
Might Bite was a long way clear of his field in the Kauto Star Novice Chase when he took a crashing fall at the final obstacle, allowing Royal Vacation to record an unlikely 33-1 success. The potential in Might Bite’s performance was clear, however, and he is the second-favourite at 6-1 in ante-post betting for the RSA Chase at Cheltenham next month.
“The thought process behind choosing Doncaster over Kempton [on Friday] was that it looked like being the easier option,” Nicky Henderson, Might Bite’s trainer, said on Wednesday.
“I liked the idea of taking him back to Kempton over two-and-a-half miles, but he needs a confidence booster. He’s been very good at home since [Boxing Day], but I just felt that after what happened, the easiest race I could find him would do the job and by going to Kempton I’d have been overlooking the obvious. Doncaster is a lovely track, the fences are spaced out lovely, he won’t be rushed over three miles and he’s already won there over fences.”
“Admittedly when it happened I thought he’d take a long time to recover because in his first couple of races he was a bit spooky at his fences. However, he recovered remarkably quickly and hopefully he puts in a clear round.”
Thursday’s tips by Greg Wood
Doncaster
1.55 Pithivier 2.30 Snow Leopardess
3.00 Might Bite 3.30 Abbreviate
4.05 Chelsea Flyer 4.40 Gambol
Huntingdon
1.15 Bandon Roc 1.45 Petite Power 2.20 Keeper Hill (nap) 2.50 Protek Des Flos
3.20 Bertenbar 3.55 Petticoat Tails
4.30 Majestic Moll
Lingfield Park
1.35 Lunch 2.05 Sutter County (nb)
2.40 Welsh Inlet 3.10 Graceful Lady
3.40 Brooke’s Point 4.15 Oberyn 4.50 Starboard
Chelmsford City
5.50 Celtic Artisan 6.25 Babouska 7.00 Lostock 7.30 Shamshon
8.00 Mr Potter 8.30 Zorba The Greek
