Phoenix Trotting Park (abandoned) (Goodyear, Arizona) | abandoned / shut down, interesting place, stadium stand

USA / Arizona / Litchfield Park / Goodyear, Arizona
 abandoned / shut down, interesting place, stadium stand
The Phoenix Trotting Park, a horse racing track, was originally built in 1964 in Goodyear, Arizona. It opened in 1965 and was run for about two and a half seasons. The large, futuristically designed structure gave an optimistic look for the 1960s.

Originally planned to be built for a cost of about $3 million, the facility ended up costing around $10 million. Various incentives during the events that were held, such as free parking and admission did initially lead to decent attendance. However, a variety of factors led to the inevitable closing of the track. The cold weather of the desert caused events to be uncomfortable to attendees. The location provided limited means to control rain, leading to floods that caused accesibility problems. The park is also located about 20 miles outside of Phoenix and was built long before any major roads made the area easily accessible to those in the city or its suburbs.

The main building of the park was used in the 1998 Charlie/Martin Sheen movie No Code of Conduct. Part of the feature involved a large explosion occurring at the track. Despite the original assurances by the production staff that no animals would be injured, hundreds of the birds occupying the abandoned structure were killed and injured when the effect went off.
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Wikipedia article: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phoenix_Trotting_Park
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Coordinates:   33°27'29"N   112°26'16"W

Comments

  • i grew up in the area where the trotting park is. it was before interstate 10 connected LA and PHX.
  • The article says 20 miles from Phx, what was the central location in Phx? From what point did the dirt roads start while headed to the trotting park?
This article was last modified 13 years ago