CECIL COUNTY — The fan-favorite Fair Hill Races may be making a return after a last minute resolution to approve a five year agreement between the Cecil County government and Sport & Entertainment Corporation of Maryland to extend the Maryland 5 Star and reinstate the races was discussed in the Cecil County Council legislative session on Tuesday.
Formerly a Memorial and Labor Day staple for almost 85 years, the Fair Hill Races were last held in the spring of 2019.
The total value of the contract is $2,850,000 split up into $100,000 from the county’s Fiscal Year 2025 budget for reinstating the Fair Hill Races and $550,000 from the FY2026 through FY2030 budgets for the 5 Star.
Of that latter amount, $450,000 will be directed towards continuing the 5-Star, an increase of $17,000 from the previous agreement of $433,000. The increase reflects the rise of expenses.
The remaining money would go toward reinstating the Fair Hill Races; the county worked with the Sport & Entertainment Corporation of Maryland to match the $100,000 from the county’s budget in order to create seed money to successfully revive the races.
Steven Overbay, Cecil County’s Director of Administration, claims there are three parts to making the races a reality again, which this agreement can make possible: money, race dates, and facilities. In the four years since the races were last held, no locals have come forward with the financial backing or organizational structure to make it happen, according to Overbay.
Overbay said that the County is committed to remaining the host sponsor in power and highlighting the equestrian community’s history and deep roots in the county.
At Tuesday’s council meeting, Cecil Countians expressed their concerns that the resolution was not getting a public hearing, as well as their fears that the legislation would take the races out of local hands.
“Having local control over the races is the least that we could get out of the current situation at Fair Hill,” said Bill Kilby, a candidate for Cecil County Executive in this year’s election, during the meeting’s public comment section.
This past July, the Maryland Department of Natural Resources held a meeting during which the Fair Hill Races were heavily discussed and citizens overwhelmingly supported keeping the event local, according to Kilby.
“We should be really, I think, be dealing with DNR rather than the 5-Star people as far as the Fair Hill Races are concerned,” Kilby said. “They’ve [DNR] stated an interest in letting the public have more input and I think that this contract should not be considered until the questions concerning the Fair Hill Races are answered.”
North East resident Sean Brimm believes that a third legislative session should be required before the resolution can be passed. He also mentioned that, since the resolution contemplates a multi million dollar expenditure of the county fund, it should be tabled until next term.
“Without an opportunity for a public hearing, it seems to me that the constitutionality of the legislation is in question,” Brimm said.
Phyllis Kilby, a former Cecil County Commissioner and wife of Bill Kilby, also questioned the council as to who would approve a contract like this without a public hearing.
“Was there fear that a public hearing might actually bring out the public in opposition?” she asked.
Phyllis Kilby also noted that spending roughly two million dollars on these events when schools are struggling is “hard to justify.”
“The vague promise of reviving the Fair Hill Races is not enough to commit to the dollar amount in this five year contract,” Phyllis Kilby said. “Basically it sounds like the county is funding this events group because it has failed to negotiate with their own Department of Natural Resources. The timing of this deal is suspect. The item was slipped into the agenda on Friday without discussion with the council or a solid contract being presented. Who approves a contract like this without even reading it?”
Before being approved, the contract will be executed to council in the form of a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU), according to Overbay.
While questioning to what extent the county was monetarily responsible for the 5 Star’s infrastructure improvements, Phyllis Kilby also requested that those figures be presented to the public in order to show how much the project has cost the county and how much it has profited.
“The 5-Star has failed to deliver local economic benefits that we were promised, and now the county tax payers are going to pay $2.8 million for the privilege of hosting it,” Phyllis Kilby said.
Council Vice President Bob Meffley believes the 5 Star is a great event and does bring in money and tourism, but seconded Phyllis Kilby in wanting to see a firm number on how much the county is actually profiting. Meffley also made clear his support for bringing the races back and getting the DNR involved.
“To me that’s what Fair Hill was for, it was left for that for the locals for the races,” Meffley said.
Other community members spoke of their passion for the return of the races, but shared concerns as to how to do so while keeping them within the local sphere.
Councilmember Al Miller believes the number one priority to get the Fair Hill Races back is focusing on the racetrack and getting it safe for horses.
“There’s a lot of history there,” Miller said. “It was a family event, people came from all over. Everybody came to the Fair Hill Races and I really feel bad for the horses. The horses at the training center used to run the track all the time and it’s just not available... it’s just unfortunate. It’s going to be tough, we’re just going to have to keep working at it. We just have to work together and move forward.”
After being introduced at Tuesday’s meeting, the resolution is scheduled for consideration by the Cecil County Council during its Oct. 15 meeting.
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