# @downinnadesert on Instagram

- **Type:** Image
- **Original URL:** https://www.instagram.com/p/DdHwJe1j-19
- **Gondola URL:** https://gondola.cc/posts/70299989-downinnadesert-instagram
- **Thumbnail:** https://img.gondola.cc/tr:w-,h-,fo-auto/postThumbnails/b4522de1a2.jpg
- **Posted:** 2026-09-10T21:00:07.000+00:00
- **Account Owner:** Down In The Desert🌵 (@downinnadesert) — https://gondola.cc/downinnadesert

## Caption

If you drove I-10 west out of the Valley anytime over the last 60 years, you probably remember this place.

The massive concrete and glass grandstand sat alone in the desert near Cotton Lane and I-10, and for years most people passing it had no idea what it actually was.

The Phoenix Trotting Park opened in Goodyear in January 1965 after East Coast racing enthusiast James Dunnigan spent around $10 million building it. The Italian-designed complex had a 1,500-seat glass-enclosed grandstand, betting windows, stables, two one-mile tracks and even a white-tablecloth restaurant.

More than 12,000 people reportedly showed up opening night.

The park hosted harness racing, where drivers sit behind horses in two-wheeled carts called sulkies.

But getting there was a problem. Before I-10 reached the area, Van Buren Street was essentially the main route out, and flooding could make the trip even worse. Attendance dropped, and racing was suspended in December 1966 after only about two and a half seasons.

Then the building sat abandoned for 51 years.

It became an unofficial West Valley landmark, something generations of Arizona families recognized on road trips to California. It also became covered in graffiti and attracted people sneaking inside to explore.

The property even became a movie set in 1998 for No Code of Conduct, starring Martin Sheen and Charlie Sheen and directed by Bret Michaels.

By 2017, the abandoned structure was finally demolished. The grandstand came down in a matter of days, while removing roughly 20,000 tons of concrete took months.

Today, the area looks completely different. Goodyear High School opened on part of the former property in August 2025.

If you grew up in the Valley, what do you remember about the Phoenix Trotting Park? 👀

Send us your Arizona stories to be featured on the page.

#Goodyear #WestValley #Phoenix #Arizona #ArizonaHistory DownInnaDesert

## Stats

- **Views:** 0
- **Likes:** 919
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- **Comments:** 27

## Tags

goodyear, arizonahistory, westvalley, arizona, phoenix

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