News about Richard Fields as the largest shareholder of Suffolk Downs, the owner of Jackson Land & Cattle, and Chairman of Coastal Development, LLC
Suffolk Downs begins zero-tolerance slaughter policy
June 29, 2008 - Thoroughbred Times
Suffolk Downs has established a new policy holding trainers accountable when their horses are sold for slaughter.
Sam Elliott, the track’s vice president for racing, has informed the leadership of the New England Horseman's Benevolent and Protective Association that any trainer found to have sold a horse for slaughter will have his stalls revoked and be denied stalls at any time in the future.
Elliott said the plan has the complete backing of Richard Fields, the real estate and casino developer who purchased a controlling interest in Suffolk Downs last year.
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Suffolk shareholder to Buff-ett up Trump casino
May 30, 2008 - Boston Herald
Suffolk Downs lead owner Richard Fields, thwarted, at least temporarily, in his drive to turn his East Boston track into a casino resort, is finding solace in Atlantic City.
Fields’ New York-based firm, Coastal Development, has unveiled plans to buy one of Donald Trump’s Atlantic City casinos for $316 million."
Read the full article for Richard Fields and the Trump deal at the Boston Herald.
April 19, 2008 - Bloodhorse Magazine
It was an early summer afternoon in 2006 when Richard Fields was introduced to suffolk downs for the first time. Although a former student at Boston University, Fields had never stepped foot onto the grounds of the racetrack until a friend took him that day.
After touring the facilities, and then being told about its dire financial situation and the very real possibility that the struggling racetrack could soon be sold to real estate developers who had plans to tear it down, Fields came to a realization.
"I decided I had to save New England’s last remaining Thoroughbred racetrack," Fields recalled. "It is such a beautiful place and has such history and tradition. The thought of losing it was disturbing. There were all these real estate developers circling around it, so I decided to figure out a program to save it."
Read the rest of the article Fields Day published at Suffolk Down, originally published by Bloodhorse Magazine.
URMC to Lead International Muscular Dystrophy Research Effort
December 2007 - University of Rochester Medical Center
The University of Rochester Medical Center (URMC) recently announced it received a $7.1 million gift from New York developer and philanthropist Richard T. Fields for neurological research and care. The gift - the largest private donation for a specific disease program in the Medical Center’s history - will create a research and clinical center of excellence for facioscapulohumeral dystrophy (FSHD), a form of muscular dystrophy.
The new Fields Center for FSHD & Neuromuscular Research will be an international collaboration between the Department of Neurology and Leiden University Medical Center in the Netherlands. The long-term, uninterrupted funding will accelerate what has generally been an uncoordinated and fragmented research effort, enabling URMC to become a national referral center for patients with the disease. Professor of Neurology Rabi Tawil, M.D., will direct the Fields Center.
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May 5, 2007 - Boston Globe
But on April 3, New York businessman Richard Fields, the primary developer of the Seminole Hard Rock Resort & Casino locations in Tampa and Hollywood, Fla., bought a significant interest in the track (estimated to be between 40 percent and 50 percent). Yesterday, under a blue sky bright with hope, riders, trainers, and horsemen were settling in on the backside, full of an energy that has been missing at Suffolk for years.
Fields was on hand, primarily to meet and greet employees as they prepared for today's Opening Day, and to pass on the word that he expects to spend the time, energy, and money to restore the luster to the historic track.
Fields knows that gaming revenue is vital for today's racetracks and said he would support a move to allow casino gambling in Massachusetts, a topic Governor Deval Patrick recently convened a group to study.
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Fields Buys Largest Interest in Suffolk Downs
April 2, 2007 - Bloodhorse Magazine
"I am excited about my investment in Suffolk Downs and about the future of this historic venue," Fields said. "Over the next few months, our team will be pursuing a master plan that allows us to integrate the horseracing that has long defined Suffolk Downs with a world-class facility for everyone who visits our site. I am excited about bringing our experience and passion for the sport to racing at Suffolk Downs."
As he has done in other locations, Fields will look to include a full range of resort activities in the master plan, including retail, restaurants, and live entertainment, family activities, and other high-end resort amenities.
"We are excited both by this new investment in racing in New England and by Richard Fields’ vision for revitalizing Suffolk Downs," said Al Balestra, president of the New England Horsemen’s Benevolent and Protective Association.
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Excelsior’s Fields considering Suffolk purchase
January 10, 2007 - Thoroughbred Times
New York businessman Richard Field has approached the track with a bid that reportedly values Suffolk Downs at approximately $100-million.
"There have been discussions," said Suffolk spokesman Chip Tuttle. "Richard Fields has expressed an interest. There have been discussions with his organization, and those discussions are ongoing."
Fields was a driving force in development of the Seminole Hard Rock Resort and Casino, with locations in Tampa and Hollywood, Florida.
He has strong connections with several racing interests, including the family of New York Yankees owner and Thoroughbred owner-breeder George Steinbrenner. Fields is also close to the Johnston family, investors in several harness tracks and off-track betting facilities in Illinois as well as Excelsior.
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Additional News About Richard Fields from the HBPA
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News Articles about Richard Fields from the National HBPA
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