Clinton Raceway grandstand 'reconstruction' begins

Piece by piece, Clinton's historic grandstand will be a pile of rubble in a matter of days.

"It's been a long time coming. We had a report three years ago that the structure was going to need to be replaced at some point. So we've been working on it for a few years now, and we're excited to see it finally starting," said Clinton Raceway General Manager, Ian Fleming.

Fleming says the grandstand, which was built in the early 1970's, served the Clinton Raceway and its thousands of spectators well, but it was time for a replacement – with accessibility issues being top of mind.

"As far as accessibility goes, it certainly wasn't built with that in mind. And, we certainly had a lot of work to do in that regard. We couldn't get it retrofitted for the couple of years it had left, so we're going to start fresh and we're excited how it's going to turn out," said Fleming.

Demolition of Clinton's historic grandstand at the Clinton Raceway began September 10, 2024. A new grandstand is expected to be built in time for the start of next year's harness racing season (Scott Miller/CTV News London)

Fleming said that it's the Clinton Raceway and partners footing the bill for the new grandstand, not Central Huron taxpayers, as the structure is almost exclusively used on Clinton harness racing days. The new grandstand will have a smaller footprint, but more seating, he said.

"Currently we have 250 seats, it's going to go to 400. There's going to be some wheelchair seating at the top of the grandstand. And there won't be any bench seating, so it'll be actually a smaller structure, but, fully accessible with an elevator. We can have staff members that can get to the roof, if need be, you know if they have mobility issues. So we're excited about making it fully accessible for everybody to enjoy," said Fleming.

Demolition of Clinton's historic grandstand at the Clinton Raceway began September 10, 2024. A new grandstand is expected to be built in time for the start of next year's harness racing season (Scott Miller/CTV News London)

The final cost of the new grandstand isn't known yet, but it will be in the millions of dollars. The expectation is that Clinton's new grandstand will be ready in time for next year's racing season.

"Obviously things don't always work out perfectly, but that's our plan, that we're ready to go next spring for the start of live racing," said Fleming.