Bay Meadows And The County Fair

[jonvn]

According to this article:

http://www.smdailyjournal.com/article_preview.php?id=80410

The county fair officials were worried about horse racing being gone and what it would do to the fair.

My question: What's going to happen to the fair after the racetrack is turned into condos and strip mall? And where are they going to be able to have it?

Looks like it will probably be the end of the SMCounty Fair too, once the track is gone. Yay SM city council!

[mrs.frankb]

Yes, Yea City Council! The racetrack should have been spared for its historical value. Further, since it helped finance and was part of the fair, it should have been under the control of the county from day one. Huge assets - like the fair and its income producing assets, the racetrack and its potential bring hundreds of thousands of dollars to our economy annually.
San Mateo's present council seems a bit snobbish - the result is going to bring many apartments and condo (as if we didn't have enough,) and the same old tired shopping malls.

[jonvn]

I wonder how many shops are going to end up closing on 25th and downtown. I suspect Hillsdale Mall is going to take quite a hit as well.

Seems like we're going to lose a lot more than the fair.

[Rogers Ruffian]

Makes you wonder why doesn't it. How many visitors from out of town visit the fair and Bay Meadows annually? How much revenue has been generated for the City? Without the race track and the fair what would the City Council say would compensate for that? Not all patrons of the fair are San Mateo residents, many come from around the Bay Area to make a day at the races and an evening at the fair an annual event and some stay in town with family, friends, or at local hotels/motels so many dollars are also spent outside of the fairgrounds also. I used to drive in from Livermore with my children to enjoy the races and the fair I grew up with, then spend that evening with family still living in town. The majority of Council members have been asleep on the job for the past 20 years and unfortunatly for San Mateo they made their bed with developers. The result is San Mateo is not and will not ever be the same. My first home in California was in San Mateo 1960 so I blow no smoke with that statement. Progress is progress, but mismanagement and disregard for the history and identity of a City is the responsibility of a failed City Council.

[jonvn]

And yet, they'll probably get re-elected. People who vote for these clowns are idiots. They're doing their best to literally destroy this city.

[frankie boon]

We only have a week or so before people start mailing back their absentee ballots on the San Mateo City Council Vote. Start writing letters to the San Mateo newspaper editors expressing your desire to vote out Matthews and Lee (incumbents) and vote in Arnold and Sanchez:
letters@dailynewsgroup.com, letters@smdailyjournal.com, letters@examiner.com, smctletters@bayareanewsgroup.com

San Mateo residents should replace two incumbents hell bent on ruining the quality of life for us. Time to vote out incumbents Matthews and Lee, and vote in Arnold and Sanchez this November. Why? Matthews/Lee are responsible for bringing in, repeatedly, so-called “high-density, transit-oriented developments” wherever they can stick them in San Mateo (think Bay Meadows and 1250 new “high density” condos). These are really poor developments cramming too many people onto too small plots of land, creating years of traffic congestion, with only the “hope” that new condo buyers won’t use their cars. This is a pipe dream. There are no restrictions on new cars in these pricey developments - if they are really “transit-oriented” developments then why not ban cars altogether? This in turn brings in more pollution from new idling cars on our roads, more congestion to City streets, and more greenhouse gases that would otherwise be non-existent. Further, because “high-density” projects cram too many people onto what should be fewer single-family home sites (like the majority of San Mateo), the quaint nature and neighborhood-feel is completely lost – good by “San Mateo” hello “San Francisco”. Plus, these incumbents seem free to change the nature of our neighborhoods without soliciting feedback from affected residents. Finally, Matthews/Lee publicly state they want MORE high-density housing “to increase supply, decrease demand, and lower the price of housing in the area.” So, residents get more greenhouse gas, years of congestion/construction, AND lower property values. I’m voting for Arnold/Sanchez to stop the madness!

[frankie boon]

To all of you 7000-plus San Mateo residents who signed the petition to democratically vote on the future of San Mateo and the Bay Meadows 20-year construction project, NOW is your time! Time to vote out San Mateo City Council incumbents Matthews and Lee who were responsible for thwarting your democratic vote on the project. Their campaign “literature” doesn’t dare mention “Bay Meadows” or their actions regarding this project. Wonder why? They continue to pooh-pooh the legitimate traffic and quality-of-life concerns of actual residents in favor of out-of-state land owner/developer/leasing company interests. The incumbent city council held “public” study sessions with these same stakeholders at night in remote locations. They continue to force “high-density” developments on residents, increasing congestion, traffic and greenhouse gases, in addition to their overall stated goal of “lowering property values” in San Mateo. They refuse to listen to residents and supported the goons who harassed residents collecting signatures for the Bay Meadows vote. Well, people are responsible for their actions, so let’s vote in Arnold and Sanchez (who oppose “high-density” developments) and vote out Matthews and Lee. Their actions speak louder than their rhetoric. Let your voice be heard on November 6, the same voice that was denied a democratic vote on the Bay Meadows construction project.

[Northshoreviewman]

The San Mateo County Fair site is a land grant from the State of California. The grant provides that a County Fair be held at the site every year. There is no chance that the city or county can use the fair grounds without continuing to hold the annual County Fair.

The County Fair land grant does NOT include the Bay Meadows property, which is privately owned. Development of the Bay Meadows land is probable.

The County Fair property is not available for development. Period.

[jonvn]

Fair officials have said they will probably not be able to continue the fair without funding from the track. That was in the article linked to in the first post.

[mrs.frankb]

I say keep 'em running - in today's market they'll build a bunch of
over priced condos that will be sporting those huge "for sale" banners in view of the whole county for years to come. The fair will be history, the track will be silent, and the personality and vitality that was part of this county will be gone forever because of the actions of this council.

Once again, I say that if there is any way this horrendous decision can be reversed, oversight of the track and fairgrounds should be given to the county.

[frankie boon]

We only have a week or so before people start mailing back their absentee ballots on the San Mateo City Council Vote. Start writing letters to the San Mateo newspaper editors expressing your desire to vote out Matthews and Lee (incumbents) and vote in Arnold and Sanchez:
letters@dailynewsgroup.com, letters@smdailyjournal.com, letters@examiner.com, smctletters@bayareanewsgroup.com:)

[Goldig]

Why didn't we the people vote of Bay Meadows? Because Jack Matthews and John Lee were afraid of what the people would say.

Please vote for Bertha Sanchez on Nov. 6th. Get those developers out of office.