Windsor Raceway owners apply to demolish main grandstand

The owners of Windsor Raceway have applied for demolition permits that would allow them raze every building on the site.

City staff and the City of Windsor's building property query website confirm the owners have applied for demolition of the main grandstand building, which housed betting wickets, slots, a restaurant and grandstands for race viewing.

Owners on Monday applied to demolish the main grandstand. A city manager said Tuesday the process to grant the permit could take between 10 days and six weeks.

Permits to demolish the maintenance building and print shop, adjacent to the grandstand, have already been granted.

This past weekend, crews were spotted tearing down the paddocks and stables.

Patrick Soulliere, president of Windsor Raceway declined to comment Tuesday morning.

Windsor Raceway opened Oct. 22, 1965. It introduced live year-round racing in 1995 and 750 slots opened in December 1998.

The slots closed April 2012 and 150 full-time employees were laid off.

Windsor Raceway closed its doors Aug. 31, 2012, four months after the province announced the end of the slots program.

The property's assessed value is more than $5.8 million.