In just a couple of weeks, hundreds of race horses will have to move out of the Alameda County Fairgrounds.
The Fair Board has decided to shut down its racing operations leaving dozens of horse owners, trainers and their families scrambling to figure out what to do next.
“Everyone doesn't know what's going to happen and everyone is scared,” Brayan Maravilla said. “We're all scared and confused and trying to figure out what's the next step.”
The groomer described how he, and dozens of families, who rely on horse racing to make a living are feeling as the fairgrounds prepare to close the stables and shut down racing operations.
“It's so sad because it's a livelihood. It's the life of a lot of people here and it's just heartbreaking,” Linda Lonnberg said.
She has an ownership stake in a dozen horses there. She moved them over from Golden Gate Fields when it closed last summer.
“They told us that we'd be able to come here for five years. We'd have five years to be able to stay here, stable train,” Lonnberg said.
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But in January, the fair board voted to shut down racing operations. Alameda County Fairgrounds CEO Jerome Hoban said the water drainage system is out of compliance and not able to sustain so many horses.
But more than anything, horse racing has become unprofitable.
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“It's no secret that horse racing has been economically moving in the wrong direction for a long time,” Hoban said. ”The Alameda County Fair has lost over $2 million in just the fall race meet.”
The manager of the San Francisco Bay Regional Water Board told NBC Bay Area that they are willing to come up with a water plan to keep the race track open and have not set any deadlines.
But the fairgrounds is moving forward with the closure, giving a March 28 deadline to move out all horses and equipment.
“I feel really sad, bad, not just for me, for everybody,” horse trainer Guillermo Preciado said.
He added that many of the families who work in the stables and live onsite in their RVs won't be able to make enough to pay rent. They are all hoping for a miracle but time is running out.
“We love this place,” Preciado said. “Really, we love this place to stay here," said horse owner Linda Lonnberg.
“My hope is that we stay. That we get to race here, we get to run for the fairs. These guys can all stay and we'll be able to come out and enjoy the sport like it's supposed to be,” Lonnberg said.
