Suffolk Meadows

John Sebastian performed at Parr Meadows in 1979

Suffolk Meadows was a quarter horse racing facility on Long Island that operated during 1977 and 1986. The racetrack was situated on a 65-acre (0.26 km2) parcel located in Yaphank northwest of the William Floyd Parkway interchange on the Long Island Expressway.

The racetrack first opened in 1977 as Parr Meadows and closed following a 113-day meet after the bank defaulted on loans. Although the track was not built by developer Ron Parr, the Parr Organization assumed ownership after the original builder ran out of funds.[1][2][3] In May 1986, horse racing briefly returned to Suffolk Meadows for an 86-day stint. The racetrack ceased operations on October 18, 1986.[4]

On September 7, 1979, 18,000 attendees gathered at Parr Meadows for a ten-hour concert featuring a number of the original performers from the Woodstock Festival. Musical artists attending the tenth year reunion concert included Blondie Chaplin, Canned Heat, Country Joe McDonald, John Sebastian, Leslie West, Jorma Kaukonen, Johnny Winter, Paul Butterfield, Rick Danko and Stephen Stills. Many of the concertgoers arrived the day before, parking along William Floyd Parkway and camping out in the woods.[2][3]

Suffolk Meadows has also been the site of competitions for the International Professional Rodeo Association and the Suffolk County Fair.[5][6] The former racetrack site has also been discussed as a potential location of a casino for the Shinnecock Indian Nation.[7] In 1997, developer Wilbur Breslin planned to develop the adjacent property into a regional shopping mall called Brookhaven Town Center.[8]

A Super Walmart is currently under construction on the site; it is expected to open by November 2021.[9]

  1. ^ "1949: Parr Brothers Join in Building Suburbia". Long Island Business News. January 9, 2004. Retrieved 2010-02-12.
  2. ^ a b Kominicki, John (May 15, 2009). "I Came Upon a Child of God, He Was Walking the LIE". Long Island Business News. Retrieved 2010-02-12.
  3. ^ a b Bleyer, Bill (August 6, 2009). "Remembering the 1979 Yaphank concert at Parr Meadows". Newsday. Retrieved 2010-02-12.
  4. ^ "N.Y. State Racing & Wagering Board Annual Report 1986" (PDF). New York State Racing and Wagering Board. Retrieved 2010-02-12.[permanent dead link]
  5. ^ "The Guide". The New York Times. August 28, 1988. Retrieved 2010-02-12.
  6. ^ Delatiner, Barbara (May 10, 1998). "Long Island Guide". The New York Times. Retrieved 2010-02-12.
  7. ^ Rattiner, Dan (May 1, 2009). "Shinnecock Resurgence". Dan's Papers. Archived from the original on November 21, 2010. Retrieved 2010-02-12.
  8. ^ Rather, John (July 27, 1997). "Plans for Yaphank Mall Put Builder Under Fire". The New York Times. Retrieved 2010-02-12.
  9. ^ Parrish, Tony N. (February 25, 2019). "24-hour Walmart Supercenter planned for LI". Newsday. Archived from the original on 2021-08-24. Retrieved 2021-08-24.