by Nancy Jaffer | Nov 23, 2023
Hundreds of people turned out as the Essex Fox Hounds gathered for their Thanksgiving hunt, adding to a decades-old tradition that many consider the perfect appetizer for a turkey dinner.
Each year, attendance grows for the occasion at scenic Ellistan in Peapack, N.J., where the backdrop of autumn leaves showcased gleaming horses, manes braided for the occasion, and the huntsman’s scarlet coat as he organized the hounds for their work. It’s a nostalgic scene that could be interchangeable with one set in the English countryside of another era.
The Essex Fox Hounds extend a welcome at Ellistan. (Photo © 2023 by Lawrence J. Nagy)
The meet offers an opportunity for everyone not only to tailgate and enjoy the fellowship of the occasion, but also to get close to the horses, often reaching out in delight to pat a soft nose when one is near.
A chance to pat a horse delights one of the spectators. (Photo © 2023 by Lawrence J. Nagy)
“I cannot believe how many people have come to help us celebrate hounds, horses and the land,” said Essex Joint Master Jazz Johnson, as she thanked everyone for being part of the occasion.
“It’s an annual family tradition. We always look forward to this day and we’re excited to be here,” said Olivia Ford of Tewksbury, N.J., as everyone gathered around a nice display of cheeses.
I asked if attendance at Ellistan means it’s difficult to make Thanksgiving dinner, but no worries; the Ford family has it figured out.
“My husband, Matthew, prepares the turkey a few days before and I’d say it’s more of a potluck. A few family members each bring a dish,” said Olivia.
Matthew and Olivia Ford with Francisco Segarra.
Her father, Francisco Segarra, is a regular too.
“What I like about it most is the people. It’s really special to be around nice people who are friendly. It’s a tradition that makes it the best.”
Mark Pfunke of Chester, N.J., is a first-timer at the Essex Thanksgiving meet and a former horse owner who drove his award-winning 1929 Packard 640 (there are only about 100 of them left).
This one was found in a junkyard in Newark in 1950 by a man who restored it to perfection. The car is not just a pretty face.
“It runs beautifully,” Mark said proudly. He was convinced to come by P.J. Ehmann of Oldwick, N.J., the owner of a 1940 Packard.
Mark Pfunke and his Packard. (Photo © 2023 by Lawrence J. Nagy)
What does P.J. enjoy about coming?
“Meeting all the people. See and be seen. And the hot toddy is good too,” he added.
Sarah Slack (she’s an Essex joint master) and her husband, Hank Slack, Ellistan’s owners, graciously treat the crowd to hot toddies if they are adults; for the kids, it’s hot chocolate. The riders call the drink a “stirrup cup,” but it’s tasty whether it’s consumed on horseback or on foot.
Michael Webb, the genial estate manager, said the toddy is a brew of brandy, rum and sherry, judiciously mixed with apple cider and honey, both produced at Ellistan.
“The original hunt club recipe was literally the alcohol, water and lemon juice,” Michael informed me.
“Twenty-five years ago, I changed it,” (for the better).
The Johnson family’s carriage is always a part of the festivities at the hunt meet. (Photo © 2023 by Lawrence J. Nagy)
As the riders prepared to move off, I chatted with Kate Crauford, an Australian who was riding with the hunt for the first time. A competitive show jumper, she borrowed Castle, a dapple grey gelding, from another Essex joint master, Dennis Sargenti. Since she was new to the scene, I thought I’d tell her why so many people come out.
A festive spread for the tailgating was enjoyed by Nancy Spatz, Dana and Lexi Sendro and Bullet the puppy. (Photo © 2023 by Nancy Jaffer)
“Do you know who Jackie Kennedy was?” I asked, not sure if the fact that she was 23 years old and from the other side of the world might need an explanation about the former first lady.
But Kate knew of her (as someone said to me, who hasn’t heard of Jackie Kennedy?), so I thought she’d appreciate hearing about her role in the Thanksgiving tradition.
I explained Mrs. Kennedy was a member of Essex, and once the media got wind of that, they turned out with their cameras every year for the hunt, to which she was often accompanied by her son, John. Even after she no longer rode on Thanksgiving, and passed away, people kept coming since they had gotten in the habit. Now Kate understands the origin, and so do you.
Jacqueline Kennedy at Ellistan when she rode with Essex (that’s her son John in the left background). (Photo © by Nancy Jaffer)
“I had no idea that so many people came and watched,” Kate told me.
“It’s actually quite nice. It’s a lot more fun, inviting and inclusive.”
Gigi Moynihan, another jumper on a holiday from the show ring, was aboard her off-the-track thoroughbred, Ripley. She rides with the hunt on Thanksgiving every year.
“It’s so great that all the people come out,” said Gigi.
“There aren’t a lot of events like this for foxhunting. It’s really nice to see everyone, all your friends come and all the local people come with the whole family. It’s just great fun.”
The hunt itself ran for more than two hours, ranging around a section of the Somerset Hills dotted with estates and undulating fields.
The hunt takes a check in the middle of an exciting afternoon. (Photo © 2023 by Nancy Jaffer)
“We covered a lot of ground and the hounds have been great,” said Lynn Jones, another joint master.
She was delighted with the number of people who came out to watch.”
“I thought it was the biggest crowd ever,” she said.
(Read my two-part 2022 series on fox hunts in New Jersey via these links. Click here for part one and here for part two.)
by Nancy Jaffer | Nov 21, 2023
We have an ancient dog-eared Advent calendar, made out of paper, that is decades old. How many I couldn’t tell you exactly, but it has the traditional numbered windows that count down until Christmas.
Each day, you open one of the windows and see a picture of a doll (most definitely not a Barbie!), a baseball, a wrapped gift or something similar that harks back to a less-complicated era.
Because this calendar has been with us for so long, I haven’t paid attention to the advances in Advent calendars that in many cases these days, seem not actually to be calendars, but rather, a set of gifts.
I saw one that offered exotic chocolates (it sold out long before Thanksgiving when I checked on it) and another that offered different types of whiskey. Then there was the Advent calendar for cats from Trader Joe’s (didn’t see a dog Advent calendar). This one featured salmon and dried seaweed treats. Yum.
The cat Advent calendar.
But what really got my attention was the Breyer model horse Advent calendar.
The Breyer horse Advent calendar. (Photo courtesy of Breyer)
You know Breyer models. What horse lover hasn’t collected them at some point; it’s not just children, plenty of adults have a Breyer collection or hobby.
Stephanie Macejko, vice president of marketing at Reeves International, Breyer’s parent company, noted the calendars containing little model horses “are popular, because the kids get to open up something every day leading up to Christmas.”
The items include tiny riders, a jump and a hay bale, among other accessories. They’re all sized to fit in with the horses, which are called Mini Whinnies, about an inch and a half high.
There’s also a unicorn Advent calendar, with not only the horned equines, but also fanciful accessories, sparkly water troughs and buckets in fantasy colors, to coordinate with their fairy tale image. The Breyer calendars are available at Amazon, tack stores and independent toy stores.
The unicorn calendar. (Photo courtesy of Breyer)
“What’s fun is that it offers kids, or adults, an opportunity to get a little surprise that they open every day,” Stephanie pointed out.
“Even once the holidays are over, the kids have a set they can play with all year round. It provides a lot of ongoing value and they have a set that would travel.”
by Nancy Jaffer | Nov 19, 2023
After an eight-year absence, the FEI World Equestrian Games in effect will be back, coming to Aachen, Germany, in 2026, in all but name.
The FEI awarded world championships in jumping, dressage, para dressage, eventing, driving and vaulting to the renowned European facility Aug. 10-23 2026, with only endurance out of the mix. That will be held in Saudi Arabia that October.
The Aachen championships will be a qualifier for the 2028 Los Angeles Games in the Olympic sports and para. Buy your tickets starting Monday Nov. 20 at https://www.aachen2026.com/
Aachen was the only site bidding for all the sports but endurance. Both Burghley in England and Boekelo in the Netherlands lost bids to hold eventing separately.
Aachen hosted what is generally accepted as the best of the WEGs in 2006, attracting 576,000 spectators. Those Games also included endurance, and reining, which is no longer an FEI sport.
The WEG began as a compilation of FEI world championships in 1990, ostensibly a one-off, but that competition in Sweden was so successful the concept continued through 2018. Other WEGs were less wonderful than their debut or Aachen’s rendition, and organizers became reluctant to bid for the whole thing because of the expense and the complications of staging that number of disciplines. So in 2022, the world championships were hosted separately in several nations.
“Following the outstanding FEI World Championships 2022 organized in Denmark, Italy and the UAE (which ran the endurance),” FEI President Ingmar de Vos said after bids were received in August, “we are confident this flexible approach with single and multiple bids serves not only the sport, but also the fans and the development of equestrian around the world, allowing different nations and venues to bid to host a major FEI event.”
And then three months later, Aachen gets awarded practically the whole shebang.
Aachen knows how to do pageantry, as it demonstrated in the 2006 WEG. (Photo © 2006 by Nancy Jaffer)
“We thank the FEI for their trust,” CHIO Aachen General Manager Michael Mronz said.
“We feel honored and pleased to host, together with the German Equestrian Federation, the FEI World Championships Aachen 2026…We would like to invite the entire world of equestrian sport to Aachen so that we can celebrate an unforgettable event together in 2026.”
The awarding of the sports to Aachen and Al Ula, Saudi Arabia, “is a significant decision for the future of equestrian sport,” De Vos maintained.
“We examined every aspect of the bids we received and especially the sporting infrastructures, the conditions for the horses, accessibility and sustainability,” he said.
“The FEI is delighted to have secured such outstanding hosts for our most prestigious championships three years in advance, which allows plenty of time for preparation and planning.
“I would like to congratulate the winners, who submitted outstanding bids. We are all well aware of Aachen’s unique track record of organizing extremely successful large-scale events. We were impressed with Al Ula’s proposal, which not only contains all the components of a successful event but seeks to showcase the heritage and potential of an entire region.”
by Nancy Jaffer | Nov 17, 2023
Dressage trainer Michael Barisone is writing a book, and now it has a happy ending—except it’s also a beginning.
The first line of the book, he explained, is “I have lived two lives.”
Barisone was given another chance today in court, following more than four harrowing years that started with a shooting, being charged with attempted murder, then ran through a high-profile trial, time in jail and stays in psychiatric institutions.
After getting good reports from psychiatric professionals, Superior Court Judge Stephen Taylor in Morristown, N.J., authorized Barisone’s discharge from Greystone Psychiatric Hospital in Morris Plains, N.J., with certain conditions.
They include having him remain in New Jersey, living at the home of a friend in Whitehouse Station; getting regular treatment from a psychologist in Clinton, no possession of firearms, only an occasional alcoholic beverage and a return to court in three months for an update.
Perhaps most important, Barisone was ordered to have no contact with dressage rider Lauren Kanarek, who nearly died after being shot twice in 2019. Kanarek and her boyfriend, Rob Goodwin, were tenants at Barisone’s horse farm in Long Valley, N.J., where they clashed with ever-increasing intensity, resulting in the shooting when Barisone thought she wanted to kill him.
Barisone was charged with second-degree attempted murder. A jury found him not guilty by reason of insanity last year and he was remanded to the Anne Klein Forensic Center for evaluation before being transferred to Greystone.
The 2008 U.S. Olympic dressage team alternate, who appeared at the courthouse in a brown Stetson and cowboy boots, had more than a dozen supporters accompany him to the courtroom. Some had known him since he first came to New Jersey in 1996.
Michael Barisone and Lara Hausken Osborne with legal team members Andrew Gimigliano, Chris Deininger and Ed Bilinkas. (Photo © 2023 by Nancy Jaffer)
Barisone briefly seemed dazed by the decision at his Krol hearing. That is a proceeding to find whether it is still fair to keep those judged not guilty by reason of insanity out of society, while determining how dangerous they are to themselves and others.
“I don’t really know what to say. I’m sort of on my heels. I don’t know what to expect anymore. I’m out of words,” Barisone said after Taylor’s decision, praising his team of lawyers, Ed Bilinkas, Chris Deininger and Andrew Gimigliano.
Then he quoted a line from rock band Shinedown’s song, Daylight: “It’s amazing what the hard times can reveal; like who shows up, who walks away and who’s for real.”
One of those who is for real is his partner, Lara Hausken Osborne. She had tears in her eyes as she said, “I’m shell-shocked. I’m still holding my breath. I can’t believe it actually happened. I’m so glad. I need him home in Florida.”
She is running a farm that Barisone owns there.
Michael Barisone hopes to be riding again soon. (Photo © by Nancy Jaffer)
Deininger said, “I believe that the court has reached the correct result. These are very complicated matters, trying to balance society’s interests with an individual’s interests. I don’t think it’s an easy task, and we struck the right balance.”
Taylor listened to testimony from Greystone psychiatrist Dr. Sarah Sheikh and psychologist Dr. Lucas Rockwood about Barisone’s progress since he started working with them and their team at the hospital this year.
Sheikh called Barisone “stable and highly functional,” so he could “step down to a less restrictive environment.” He already spent 21 days out of the hospital, when he was able to go to shops and restaurants, as well as seven nights in a friend’s home.
Patients are taught coping skills about how to handle adverse situations and healthy ways to get their needs met. When Barisone was dealing with Kanarek, he suffered from delusional disorder and believed she was trying to kill him, Lockwood said.
He noted that while Barisone remembers what happened before and after the shooting, he cannot recall anything about the so-called “index incident.”
When certain needs are not met during childhood, Lockwood said, it develops a defeatist perspective. Barisone was abused as a youth, and “made to feel worthless as a child.” He handled that by overcompensating with perfection to counter underlying feelings of inferiority. But at the time of the incident, he didn’t have the coping skills he needed to deal with his issues involving Kanarek and Goodwin, whom he wanted to evict.
Being obsessive-compulsive or having an excessive focus on work are simply character traits, noted Sheikh, saying Barisone is empathetic and has “good impulse control.”
As an example of how Barisone had progressed, Lockwood mentioned when another patient got in his face, he used the “stop skill—stop, take a step back and proceed mindfully,” and then summoned Greystone staff to handle the problem.
Barisone’s delusional issues are in remission now, and he no longer thinks he was acting in self-defense when he encountered Kanarek.
“He says he feels horrible for what he did. He’s glad she survived and wishes the best for her,” Lockwood reported.
When asked what might happen if Barisone would encounter Kanarek, Lockwood replied, “He does not want to see her ever again.”
Queried on the stand whether he saw any risks if Barisone is not held in a secure setting, Lockwood replied, “Not at this time.”
He agreed with Sheikh that Barisone should be released and continue treatment with the private psychologist, since “he does not need the level of treatment from Greystone.”
by Nancy Jaffer | Nov 17, 2023
With Wellington, Florida, “at a turning point,” the Village Council faced some hard truths and voted 4-1 Thursday night to take land out of the Equestrian Preserve, the key to enabling development of an expanded showgrounds that would replace the current cramped facility.
“This is a game played in four quarters and overtime,” said Councilman John McGovern, “and we are a couple of minutes into the fourth quarter.”
The Wellington International showgrounds is the focal point of the Village’s reputation as the “Winter Equestrian Capital of the World,” but it needs more land to spread out and offer the amenities necessary to upgrade its standard.
Developer Wellington Lifestyle Partners, headed by Doug McMahon, has agreed to build the badly needed showgrounds expansion on its Wellington South parcel, but only if WLP is permitted to construct a golf community on 96 acres of its Wellington North parcel down the road. That property is designated as part of the 9,000 acres of Preserve that is spread throughout the village.
Many residents who attended council meetings on the development plans over the last three nights consider the Preserve sacrosanct, and felt removing any of the acreage had the potential to create a domino effect precedent that eventually would unravel it.
But the showgrounds situation was made more dire by the revelation Wednesday that Global Equestrian Group, which owns the home of the world-famous Winter Equestrian Festival, is for sale and its future with the facility is a question mark.
An illustration of the expanded showgrounds, complete with derby field and indoor arena.
The vote isn’t the last word on the development situation, because this was only the first reading of the ordinances. The second reading is set for some time in January, when four of the council members must vote in favor of removing land from the Preserve if that is to go forward.
Vice Mayor Michael Napoleone was the lone nay vote on taking land from the Preserve and a change of zoning for Wellington North, but voted with the rest of the council in a unanimous decision involving rezoning land on Wellington South to Equestrian Commercial Recreation where the showgrounds will be expanded to include dressage. That discipline runs at Equestrian Village on Wellington North, and will continue there until work is finished on the expanded showgrounds, with a deadline of Dec. 31, 2028 to complete the project.
While Napoleone noted everyone agrees the horse show needs improvement, he wasn’t comfortable voting for the changes on Wellington North.
“At this time, I still have too many questions about what that future horse show is going to be,” he commented.
“I don’t have enough information about the capital, where the money’s coming from, how this is going to happen.”
He wonders, “Is it the right product? Is it sustainable? Does it make sense for the community? And if it does, then we revisit this, but today I don’t have the information I need to do that.”
A formal application for the showgrounds has yet to be filed, and it will have to go through the hearing process to seek approval.
Addressing those at the meeting who were upset about taking the Wellington North land out of the preserve, Councilman Michale Drahos reminded the crowd, “We don’t own the land that we’re all here talking about.”.
Wellington North not only is the home of dressage, but it also has a grass derby field that is highly regarded by show hunters and jumpers.
“It is owned by a private entity; it is not Wellington’s land,” Drahos pointed out about the North parcel.
“If they decide to shut it down tomorrow, we cannot stop them from doing that. My approach to doing this is not from the standpoint of a hostage, it’s from the standpoint of an opportunist.”
He explained, “If I have a deal on the table that says to me, you have to take out less than 1 percent of the Equestrian Preserve area land to guarantee the future success of equestrian sport, I’m taking the deal. Because that’s what I believe puts us on the most stable ground and not just today, but 50 years into the future.”
There are those who have expressed concern that Mark Bellissimo is involved with WLP, because some felt they had been burned by him in the past.
Drahos gave credit where credit is due, saying, “My kids grew up going to showgrounds that Mark Bellissimo built. It’s not a popular thing to say in a room like this, to speak favorably of what Mark Bellissimo accomplished for our community.”
Drahos referenced a comment by Murray Kessler, the former president of the U.S. Equestrian Federation, made during a hearing on the development issues that Mark Bellissimo is responsible for the explosion of the sport in Wellington.
But Drahos acknowledged, “Mark Bellissimo is out of gas. To his credit, I think he has recognized that what he wishes to accomplish in this town he can’t get done. He’s gone to somebody he thinks can. If we are determined to rely upon the past, we are destined to become an afterthought.”
Council member Tanya Siskind said there is time to make further adjustments, but noted “the applicant has made many concessions, has listened, has made a less dense project. Those who oppose this and those who support it all have at least one thing in common, and that is the show must improve and/or expand. This is the vehicle to get there. I think is protecting our equestrian lifestyle.”
Mayor Anne Herwig likes to say that without the equestrian element, “We’d be Boynton Beach without the beach. This is what sets us apart.”
She added about the showgrounds, “I don’t know a way to save it without some investment. None of this was our investment, it’s all been private investment, but we are the stewards.”
For the previous columns about last week’s hearings on Wellington development, click on this link for the second story and here for the first story.
by Nancy Jaffer | Nov 16, 2023
At the very end of a five-hour Wellington, Florida, council meeting on the controversial Wellington North and South development proposals, Councilman John McGovern raised a key question Wednesday night.
At the heart of all the conversation about the development is the need for an expanded showgrounds at Wellington International, home of the Winter Equestrian Festival. Developer Wellington Lifestyle Partners has agreed to put money toward the project on Wellington South under a scenario that would allow them to build housing and recreational amenities on Wellington North, now the home of the Global Dressage Festival at Equestrian Village.
That property and the neighboring White Birch polo fields are part of the Equestrian Overlay Zoning District, commonly known as the Equestrian Preserve, a designation which is supposed to mean it is safe from being overtaken by major housing developments. But remarks during a public hearing Wednesday and in a comment period Tuesday night raised the issue of how much the showgrounds project would cost to build, and where the funding would come from.
So a concerned Councilman McGovern asked Wellington International President Michael Stone, “We’ve heard a great deal about GEG (Global Equestrian Group, Wellington International’s owner)…and we’ve heard GEG is foundering, is not going to do any maintenance on the showgrounds. We’ve heard any number of things. And the most substantive of those that we heard, and we heard it several times tonight, is that GEG is up for sale and has been up for sale for two years. So I want to give you a chance to address whether GEG, Wellington International, any of that is currently up for sale today.”
Stone responded, “GEG has spent close to $12 million since they bought it (the showgrounds, in 2021). So for people to say they’ve invested nothing in the property is nonsense. GEG is owned by private equity, Waterland Group in Denmark, which has its headquarters in the Netherlands.
“I think most people involved in that level of investment businesses know most private equity is run on a five-year turnaround. So they try to improve the product and then they want to sell the whole thing. This is pretty typical of that sort of investment. So sure, it hasn’t been for sale for two years, but if someone wants to come and buy GEG, I’m sure Waterland will sell it. It’s not a secret and never has been.”
Michael Stone. (Photo © by Nancy Jaffer)
The council faces a big decision on whether to take 96 acres out of the Equestrian Preserve so WLP can build its project on Wellington North. WLP has the land for a showgrounds expansion on Wellington South, just down the road, but without permission to build on Wellington North, the property needed to improve the showgrounds won’t be available.
To repeat a comment printed here yesterday from a spokesperson for WLP: “If the residential units in our application are not granted on the North Parcel it simply does not make economic sense to give up the residential development rights we have on Pod F (acreage on Wellington South) in addition to the incremental investment of approximately $25mm+ in new equestrian facilities that we are committing to build on Pod F.”
When it comes time for a final vote, four of the five council members, a super-majority, would have to say yes on removing land from the Equestrian Preserve. That has many Wellington residents upset; more than 7,000 signed a petition against that action, and “Horses Not Houses” T-shirts were in evidence among those in the crowd at Wednesday’s meeting.
Scores of people either spoke against removing the land from the Preserve or wrote in on comment cards that they were opposed. Only a minority who appeared during the public hearing were for allowing development on Wellington North, because they felt improving the showgrounds is so important to the future of Wellington as the “Winter Equestrian Capital of the World.”
If the showgrounds is expanded, dressage would move there from Equestrian Village. The issue has been raised, however, that dressage riders don’t like the idea of being among the hunters and jumpers of WEF because that could distract their horses.
Olympic dressage rider Ashley Holzer said she originally was opposed to the project, but after conversations and consideration, she is in favor of it.
Ashley Holzer competing at the Global Dressage Festival. (Photo © by Nancy Jaffer)
Of WLP, she said, “They have changed their initial format. They are working with us. They really do want us to have a home for dressage. My fear is we could lose dressage. Period. The End.
“Before Global, there was not this world-renowned facility that we have. If dressage has no home, we’re moving to Ocala,” she continued, referring to the World Equestrian Center there, the facility with a 5-star hotel and the equivalent for horses in the stables.
However, Equestrian Village is private property, and the owners are under no compulsion to offer dressage shows there past Wellington International’s 2024 lease. If Equestrian Village and White Birch are not taken out of the Preserve, the owners could have a riding school there or open a restaurant, office building or “personal care” facilities, such as a nail salon or a chiropractor’s office on 45 percent of the property, according to municipal staff.
Drew Martin, who appeared on behalf of the Sierra Club in Palm Beach, Martin and St. Lucie counties, told the council, “We oppose this project. I have not heard a single solid argument why you would approve this.” Of the developers, he said, “There’s a question of whether they have the ability to finance this project.”
He believes there is enough in the way of assets in Wellington to improve the showgrounds without approving the Wellington North project.
“You don’t need to sell out to a developer to make it happen,” he contended.
“You cannot maintain a town as successful as Wellington if you don’t preserve something. I look at your logo and you have the horse and the trees. And I’m thinking if you approve this, you’ve got to change the logo. You’ve got to get rid of the horse and get rid of the trees. I don’t know what you’re going to put there, maybe a picture of a traffic jam.”
The derby field used by hunters and jumpers would be a huge loss in the view of some speakers at the Wellington meetings, as very few grass fields are available in the U.S. (Photo © 2023 by Nancy Jaffer)
Councilman Michael Napoleone was pondering the whole situation during the meeting.
“If the applicant wasn’t suggesting expanding the showgrounds onto Pod F, would staff have still recommended taking this land out of the EOZD to build this development,” Napoleone asked Tim Stillings, the village’s director of planning, zoning and building.
“I don’t believe so,” he replied.
Napoleone continued, “We wouldn’t be here today but for the fact that they’re promising to build an expanded showgrounds on Pod F. So maybe we should start talking about what that’s going to look like and what’s really going to happen, versus the Phase I we’re being guaranteed in Condition Seven (of the developer’s application) which really is just moving what we already have to a different footprint so they can build what they’re not allowed to build on the Equestrian Village/(White) Birch footprint with the hope and promise someone’s going to come in with a couple of dump trucks full of cash to build out the rest of it.
Horses not Houses T-shirts were worn by those like Drew Martin who are concerned about taking land out of the Equestrian Preserve.
“If they don’t build out the rest of it, we’re not really gaining anything, right?” Napoleone continued.
“This is not an easy yes or no. I’ve struggled with a lot of this But for getting the expanded showgrounds, I can’t envision why anyone would vote to take property out of the EOZD. I don’t know that I’ve heard anything in the months leading up today that I know I’m getting anything more than Phase I. So maybe we can hear more about how do we know we’re getting all of the equestrian expansion versus just Phase I, which you (WLP) said you’re going to put in $25 (million) to $30 million” which other people said at the meeting is not nearly enough to complete the project.
Traffic concerns and environmental issues involving the Wellington South parcel also were discussed, with conflicting information in comments from both sides.
The meeting will continue Thursday night, but that won’t be the end of it, as there needs to be a second reading and January was mentioned for more meetings in that time frame.
To read a previous story about the showgrounds, click here.
