CHARLOTTESVILLE, VA (CVILLE RIGHT NOW) – Foxfield Racing, the company that runs the site’s horse races, denied allegations that the property is in disrepair and reaffirmed its commitment to running its fall event. Foxfield Racing released a letter Tuesday explaining the motivation behind its lawsuit against the property’s owners, Foxfield Land Preservation.

Foxfield Racing is seeking to force Foxfield Land Preservation to sell the property to the racing company.

At the heart of the dispute, according to Foxfield Racing, is a promise made by an unnamed former member of Foxfield Racing’s board, who in 2023, offered to sell the property it to the company once it had raised the necessary funds, the racing company said in its letter.

“We had anticipated being able to take over the ownership after he transitioned it, and he has pulled back from that position,” Foxfield Racing board member Dr. Reynolds Cowles told Cville Right Now.

What’s more, Cowles said that board member has threatened to not renew the current lease when it expires in 2030. Cowles said that triggered “the necessity for our action.”

“The individual is attempting a hostile takeover of Foxfield Racing without ideas for improvement, community input, or the infrastructure and experience necessary to operate a National Steeplechase Association (NSA)-sanctioned race meet,” the letter said. “This attempted takeover is an existential threat to preserving the future of the Foxfield Races as a treasured community asset. Our lawsuit seeks to enforce his obligations and protect the races, and we are optimistic about the outcome.”

In the letter, Foxfield Racing disputed claims made by Foxfield Land Preservation co-founder Zach Miller last month that the racetrack had fallen into a state of disrepair. The company also maintained its commitment to run its fall races on Sunday, Oct. 4.

“Our turf is performing well and undergoing routine compaction and moisture testing and grass-growth monitoring to ensure consistent surface conditions for race day,” Foxfield Racing’s letter said. “We also broke ground on the installation of new fencing last week and continuously inspect and repair the inside rail as part of our close collaboration and compliance with the NSA to ensure our facilities are safe for horses, riders, and spectators. Any suggestion otherwise is false and misleading.”

Foxfield Racing also said it had met with the individual, who is no longer a member of the board, numerous times and has been unable to receive a commitment that the company will be able to operate the races past its current lease.

The letter also states this individual has “made false claims about our organization and attempted to confuse the public by dramatically inflating his role, which is solely that of a landlord, in the past, present, and future of the Foxfield Races.”

“To be clear, this individual has zero role in the operation of the Foxfield Races,” the letter said.

Responding to an email inquiry from Cville Right Now, a Foxfield Land Perservation spokesperson said the organization’s formal response to Foxfield Racing’s lawsuit would be filed in court on Wednesday.

The letter comes one month after Miller, who is named as a defendant in the lawsuit along with his organization and the Cassiopeia Foundation, which operates the Foxfield Fund, released a letter of his own to the community, bringing the lawsuit into the public spotlight.

In his letter, Miller claimed the property’s race railing, observation deck and other infrastructure had “fallen into a dangerously degraded state.” He also called the lawsuit “a retaliatory action.”

“I would not categorize it (as) retaliatory,” Cowles said. “What I would categorize it is living up to commitments that have been made in the time that individual was both on our board and in other discussions that was subsequent to previous and subsequent to their purchase of the property.”

Miller said the organization had brought their concerns to Foxfield Racing privately, and that the Cassiopeia Foundation had offered to make a multi-million-dollar charitable investment for repairs, capital improvements and new staff.

“But our concerns about the safety of spectators, riders and horses were met with inaction, dismissiveness and outright hostility,” Miller said. “And our proposal that offered funding was rejected out of hand.”

Cowles disputed the safety claims made by Miller, saying the course “meets and exceeds” the standards set by the NSA, and is inspected twice a year before every year, with the next inspection set for next week. He also said the tower has been inspected by two different engineering firms as well as Albemarle County, with all requirements met and major improvements made.

“We feel we have addressed the safety issues on this course in a more than adequate manner,” Cowles said.

Miller purchased Foxfield in 2024 through the Cassiopeia Foundation, establishing the Foxfield Land Preservation shortly thereafter.

For Cowles, who has been involved with the races since he was an attending veterinarian at the first running in 1977, the future of Foxfield would be secure in the hands of his company.

“We have a very strong commitment to community and to steeplechase racing and using these races to foster community and our partners in our benevolent efforts,” he said. “And we feel we have established the trust and the honesty with the community and are the best operator going forward.”