---
title: "Doug McCallum sets out steps to bring harness racing back to Cloverdale by fall 2027"
description: "Surrey's mayor-elect says the City will rebuild the Cloverdale Fairgrounds barns and racing oval and sign a new racing lease, the Surrey Now-Leader reports. He says the Province must also commit."
canonical_url: "https://voche.me/bc/surrey-2026/news/mccallum-cloverdale-harness-racing-plan-october-21"
last_updated: "2026-10-23T16:59:04.707Z"
---

Surrey mayor-elect [Doug McCallum](/bc/surrey-2026/candidates/doug-mccallum) says the City will rebuild the barns and the racing oval at the Cloverdale Fairgrounds, with harness racing back in the fall of 2027. He set out the steps in a statement on October 20, the Surrey Now-Leader reported on October 21.

## The steps

McCallum listed three, according to the Now-Leader: rebuild the backstretch barns and the racing oval, sign a new long-term racing lease, and bring the Harness Racing BC office back to the Fairgrounds. He said the work will start when the new council is sworn in. The report gives no cost.

McCallum said three groups have to commit. The City owns the Fairgrounds and would rebuild the barns. Harness Racing BC brings the horses and the people. The Province licenses racing, approves race dates and controls the gaming money that pays the race prizes.

## Why he spoke now

The statement followed a pledge by Lorne Doerkson, leader of the Conservative Party of BC, to work with the City of Surrey and Harness Racing BC on racing in Cloverdale, the Now-Leader reports. McCallum said he welcomed it, and that council will be ready to meet Doerkson and Harness Racing BC on the day it is sworn in.

## The track

Fraser Downs ran in Cloverdale for close to 50 years, the Now-Leader reports. Daily Hive reported that the operator closed the track in August 2025, after the City of Surrey ended its lease. In his statement, McCallum said the track was shut down in August 2025 and the barns came down in December. He also said 218 members of Harness Racing BC lost the track. That figure is his own.

## The promise

The plan matches a campaign promise. In a release on October 8, McCallum committed that a council with a majority from his slate would rebuild the barns and oval and sign a new racing lease, with the fall 2027 meet as the target. The Safe Surrey Coalition now holds eight of the nine council seats, according to the City's official declaration of October 21.

The promise is tracked on McCallum's page in the [Surrey promise tracker](/bc/surrey-2026/tracker). The new council holds its first meeting on Monday, November 2.

## Sitemap

See the full [sitemap](/bc/surrey-2026/sitemap.md) for all pages.