Plans have been unveiled for a $680-million cultural, sporting, and leisure development in County Tipperary, Ireland, that includes at least two racecourses, including one with an all-weather surface, a casino, and a full-size replica of the White House in Washington, D.C.
Dubbed the Tipperary Venue, the Las Vegas-style development was conceived by Irish games arcade mogul Richard Quirke of Dublin and is planned for an 800-acre site near the town of Two-Mile-Borris.
The development also has the endorsement of Horse Racing Ireland and former Irish government minister Michael Lowry, who told Irish Times that no state money would be needed to build the facility, “which will float on its own merit.”
A planning application was made to the North Tipperary Council on Wednesday. If project gets the go-ahead, construction could begin early next year and could be completed in approximately three years. It would mean the closure of National Hunt course Thurles Racecourse and eventually would create full-time employment for 2,000 people.
The development, which also includes a 15,000 music and conference venue, a greyhound track, five-star hotel, and a golf course, received enthusiastic support from trainer Aidan O’Brien, who touted it as a potential future site for the Breeders’ Cup.
“This is mind-blowing for the whole exchequer and the economy,” O’Brien told the Irish Independent.
“One market in the world that hasn’t been tapped into is the high-rolling people who fly from country to country.
“If they come into this country, everyone will benefit. This is a facility that’s not waiting on funding from anybody else…This could be a Breeders’ Cup facility.”
O’Brien’s stable jockey, Johnny Murtagh, also threw his support to the project.
“We have the best horse in the world, best two-year-old this year, best trainers, jockeys, owners,” he told the Irish Independent. “We’ll now have the best racetrack."
The replica of the White House as it stood in 1829 would be known as the Hoban Memorial in honor of Irish immigrant James Hoban, who designed the original building and supervised its reconstruction after it was destroyed during the War of 1812.