By Karen Haave

A challenging early morning blaze involving two dozen fire departments has left the 100-year-old grandstand at Balmoral Park Racetrack in Crete in ruins.

It also left fans with happy memories of the facility nursing broken hearts and the knowledge that hopes for a racetrack revival has little chance of ever happening now.

For Blaine Lamb Rosenfeldt, the was a place where her family “always had events and parties.”

Her uncle worked security there, so it was a familiar place for them.

“My favorite memories are having holiday parties there and my son getting to take pictures with the horses that won in the winner’s circle,” she said.

But now, “Balmoral is done, and it’s going to take millions of dollars to clean up after (this) fire.

“History doesn’t always go out with a bang; sometimes, it just burns out in the dark while nobody is looking.”

The loss of Balmoral, she said, is a “quiet end to a proud history in Crete. We only seem to miss our landmarks once there is nothing left but ashes.”

Firefighters respond

Crete Township Fire Protection District was dispatched to a structure fire by Laraway Communication Center for a structure fire at 26435 S. Dixie Highway at 5:54 a.m. on May 17, said Fire Chief Donald Radtke in a press release.

“First units on scene reported a fire on the roof of the main grandstand. Upon arrival Command upgraded the alarm, to a full still alarm response,” he said in the release. “Due to the rapid growth of the fire, Command determined the fire to be a defensive operation.

“The incident’s alarm was upgraded multiple times to a 5th alarm with additional alarms of ‘MABAS Tended Strike Team’ (Division 15) and a ‘MABAS Task Force’ form (Division 19) to cover backfill of stations for local communities committed to the incident.

“The fire was extinguished by multiple elevated master streams, with additional spot fire being extinguished throughout the evening. No injuries to responding firefighters were reported.”

Fighting the blaze was complicated by the lack of a water source near the racetrack. Local resident and historian Raymond Mattox, who once worked there, noted that when the facility was closed 10 years ago, all of the utilities, including water, were shut off.

Monee Fire Chief Carl Nieland confirmed that his department was among those that responded to the alarm.

“The call came in at 05:55 a.m. We found a deep-seated, fast-moving fire. There were no working fire hydrants. Water had to be shuttled in.

“The fire was escalated to four alarms with two special alarms for tenders and coverage of the fire station in eastern Will county. Crews were involved in firefighting for over nine hours.”

In addition to Monee and Crete, other fire departments responding were from Beecher, Manhattan, Frankfort, Minooka, Morris, Plainfield, Wilmington and Channahon, as well as Tinley Park, Homer Township, South Chicago Heights, Steger, Chicago Heights, Sauk Village, Munster, Lansing, St. Anne, Country Club Hills, Park Forest, Bourbonnais, Thornton, and from Indiana, Lake Dale, Cedar Lake, Crown Point, St. John and Lowell.

Tender 6641 from the Lowell Fire Department responded to a call for mutual aid and delivered an estimated 12,000 gallons of water to assist with fire suppression operations.

The cause of the fire is under investigation. But Michael Einhorn, retired Crete Mayor and Fire Chief, said, “When a fire starts in a vacant building, you have to be suspicious about the cause and origin.”

A long history

Once owned by the legendary New York Yankees owner George Steinbrenner, Balmoral Park’s history dates back to 1926. The racetrack was known for hosting a variety of events, including thoroughbred racing, harness racing, dressage horse shows, and even summer carnivals.

Initially named Lincoln Fields, it was where the famed colt Whirlaway won his first career race on June 3, 1940. He went on to win the Triple Crown in 1941.

The fire this month was not the only one to damage Balmoral. The first was in 1952, during renovations to the grandstand. But the second was tragic, when 33 horses were killed and six people were injured in July 1981.

By 2015 the popular racetrack was in bankruptcy, reportedly because of a court ruling that Illinois racetracks had to pay restitution to casinos.

News that Balmoral was closing was a shock for its fans. But hope was renewed in 2017 when it reopened as a show-jumping venue.

The venture failed, in part because it was too far from Chicago hotels for horse owners who didn’t want to leave their prized investments that far behind. Three years later, Balmoral closed a second time and was on the market for $4 million.

It reportedly is for sale again, with a price tag reduced to just under $2 million.

The historic 200-acre facility includes 10 arenas, 20 barns, and the now-destroyed grandstand.

Work and play

Mattox, who worked there beginning in 1991 as a 20-year-old groom and driver in the days of harness racing, said some of his happiest memories are of Balmoral Park.

“The race track was busy back then, the grandstand was full, over 3,000 people at the time,” he said.

“There were over 4,000 people at least on the outside in front of the grandstand back in those days.

“I did clean a lot of horse stalls out back then — like 48 — the same number of horses I fed.

“It was fun, it was exciting … it was a learning experience for the five years of doing harness racing, being with the top drivers there at the time. … I learned a lot.

“Me and my brother Eric, we used to race together. We were right across from each other in the back barns in the back in those days, and then when I came to the paddock, oh that was always a competition!

“Those were some of the greatest moments. But you look at it now, that’s all boarded up on top. Our Christmas party was up there for the drivers and the grooms back in the day.

Rosenfeldt said she tried to acquire some mementos last year, hoping to donate them to the Crete Area Historical Society, but had no luck.

“I spoke with the owner’s wife, Sasha. She told me to give her till July, and she would give me things for the Crete Historical Society. I was not happy that the place had been vandalized so horribly over and over, and no one cared to preserve or put in storage somewhere all the historical items.

“She asked me to take my pictures (posted on social media) down showing how bad it was inside, and she started crying.

“I felt bad, but we agreed I would take it down if she agreed to give me the things to give to Crete. July came, and she wouldn’t answer the phone, did not text back, and here we are.

“It’s so sad.”

Karen Haave is a freelance reporter.

Fire officials soon realized after arriving to Balmoral Park Racetrack on May 17 they would have to treat the fire defensively due to the extent of the blaze. They were hindered by a lack of working fire hydrants, turned off years ago, and water had to be trucked in from several departments. (Photo by Jesse Berryhill)