Baltimore mayor sues to block move of Preakness Stakes from Pimlico

BALTIMORE — Baltimore Mayor Catherine Pugh has sued the owners of Pimlico Race Course in an effort to seize the horse racetrack and block the move of the Preakness Stakes out of the city.

News outlets report that on behalf of the city, Pugh is also trying to prevent the Stronach Group from using state bonds to fund improvements at Laurel Park, which is being eyed as the new home for the second jewel in the Triple Crown.

A 1987 Maryland law bars the Preakness from leaving Pimlico unless in case of a disaster or emergency. The lawsuit accuses the Stronach Group of essentially manufacturing a disaster by underinvesting in Pimlico, instead spending the majority of the state aid it receives at Laurel Park.

The Stronach Group called the lawsuit “premature and unfounded.”