L.A. Turf Club Won’t Bid for Troubled Track

ST. PAUL, Minn. â€”  The president of Santa Anita Race Track, which owns 39% of Canterbury Downs in Shakopee, says his company has no interest in buying the Minnesota track.

Santa Anita has been mentioned as a possible buyer of the financially troubled Canterbury Downs.

But Robert Strub, president and chief executive officer of the California track, said his company will not join bidding for the purchase of Canterbury.

“We are not interested,� said Strub, who is also an executive vice president on Canterbury’s board of directors. “We are working hard to find other investors and will continue to do that. But at this point in time and for the foreseeable future, we do not intend to put any more money into Canterbury.�

Strub said that Santa Anita’s board of directors has made a public commitment to its shareholders that the company will not make any additional investments in the Shakopee track.

Santa Anita, which operates under the corporate name Los Angeles Turf Club, wrote off a $17-million investment in Canterbury in 1987. The company is a public corporation listed on the New York Stock Exchange.

Strub also said Santa Anita would be willing to sell its interest in Canterbury.

“We are willing to sell our interest in the track if that’s what the buyer wants,� he said. “Or we’ll stay involved with what our interest is and continue to operate as a consultant or even take a management contract.�