Racecourse stand set to be demolished and replaced

Ambitious plans have been unveiled to replace an outdated stand at a North Yorkshire racecourse with a new £5m landmark building.

A planning application has been submitted to demolish the current stand at Thirsk Racecourse, which was built in the 1960s.

If the plans are given the go-ahead, the building would then be replaced with a three-storey facility including a public bar on the ground floor, a premium dining room on the first floor and a roof terrace on the second floor.

James Sanderson, chief executive of Thirsk Racecourse, said the planned new stand would be the latest improvement to take place at the venue, with the aim of creating a modern course fit for the 21st Century.

"We've patched and patched the stand over the last few years, but it's come to the end of its useful life and we need to look to the future," he said.

"If you're not going forward in racing you're going backwards, and we don't want to do that.

"Racing is a very good sport and we've got to modernise to attract the next generation of racegoers and keep the current generation happy."

According to the Local Democracy Reporting Service, Mr Sanderson said that subject to planning and finance, work could start in September, with the project estimated to take 18 months to complete.

He added that if not this year, it was likely work would start in September 2026, with the course continuing to operate as normal while the project was completed.

Supporting documents submitted with the application by KCA Architects added that the racecourse needed to continue to "evolve and develop", with the stand targeted at racegoers who wanted an "upgraded experience".

The application stated that the existing stand has served the racecourse well over the years, but was now outdated and had numerous structural issues, with a recommendation from structural engineers that the building be demolished.

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