Dubai sheikh buys Aiken land for track
The ruling sheikh of Dubai has purchased a large parcel of land in Aiken County with the intent of building a private Thoroughbred training facility.
Darley America, the U.S. arm of Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al Maktoum's Thoroughbred racing empire, has expanded its presence in Aiken with the purchase of 360 acres in Montmorenci. The intent is to build a training facility, but its true impact will be how the project benefits the community economically, including direct and indirect job creation.
The deal for the property closed Wednesday afternoon, and the land that was used previously for agribusiness will continue to be green space, as the new facility will feature a one-mile dirt training track, said Jimmy Bell, Darley America president. The site is approximately 6-miles away from the Aiken Training Track.
"Aiken has a history with Thoroughbred racing that doesn't have to be researched," said Bell. "We have a great regard for Aiken. The horses who've trained in Aiken have a tremendous record and have had great success. Aiken is a place that has stood the test of time and has a history of developing young horses into race horses."
In addition to retaining the area's green space, the training facility will provide environmentally clean jobs, said Lee Christian, South Carolina Thoroughbred Owners' and Breeders' Association president.
"It's a feather in the Aiken area's cap to have such a global presence as Darley make a sizable investment to showcase Aiken as a wonderful place to train horses," Christian said.
There's no time frame for when construction may begin on the facility, or when it will be built out, Bell said. Darley horses in Aiken, for the time being, will continue to be trained at the Aiken Training Track, he said. There are no immediate plans to sell the property Darley purchased from Stonerside Stable on Sept. 1, 2008, including the two barns at the training track. Questions remain as to what will happen to the barns when Darley decides to pull out.
"Having seen what he's (Sheikh Mohammed) done in Saratoga and in Lexington, this is fantastic for Aiken," said Samantha Charles, Greater Aiken Area Chamber of Commerce equine steering committee chair.
Meybohm Realtors Realtor Suzy Haslup, an accredited land consultant, had been working with Darley since last spring in an effort to find suitable property for the building of a Thoroughbred training center.
"I'm so pleased that Darley has been able to acquire one of the most sought after parcels of agricultural property in the county," said Haslup. "The benefits to Aiken to keep this quality of an operation here is immense. The attributes of Aiken finally won out over other horse training areas throughout the country."
Many variables factored into the equation as to why Darley America selected Aiken as the site to build their new training facility, Bell said.
The training facility will be the place Darley uses to prepare their yearlings and 2-year-olds during the winter and spring for their careers at the racetrack, he said. Aiken was also considered because of the existing infrastructure that's in place and its personnel, he said. Darley has about 65 horses training at the Aiken Training Track.
"There's the history, the location, the weather and it's an ideal place; our horses will get a little bit of everything," said Bell. "We have an excellent staff in place."
Contact Ben Baugh at bbaugh@aikenstandard.com.