Pimlico deal took weekend negotiations, limits to state liability to pass at 11th hour

Plans to revamp Baltimore’s deteriorating Pimlico Race Course have been years in the making, but it took a weekend of negotiations and a bill passing in the waning hours of the legislative session for Gov. Wes Moore’s administration to advance a new deal. State officials hope the deal will spur a declining industry with facility upgrades and year-round racing, provide a boost to communities neighboring Pimlico and other tracks, and keep the Preakness Stakes — one of three annual events comprising thoroughbred horse racing’s Triple Crown — running in Maryland.