"We started with a great board with some high-end people," said Roncelli, who joined the board in 2000 and left six years later. "One by one, they saw it wasn't going the way it should be and decisions were made without them. One by one, they left."
Top executives left with equal regularity. The most recently departed CEO, Michael Neuman, lasted four months.
Neuman resigned in June, shortly after the California Horse Racing Board received Neuman's letter saying that the company had no plans to rebuild Santa Anita's barn area. The disrepair of the barns had long been a hot button issue, and infuriated board members asked that Neuman appear at their next meeting.
Stronach showed up instead. He told members that he was "very upset" that Neuman had written the letter, according to a transcript of the June 19 meeting, and said that Neuman was "very much reprimanded." Neuman's resignation was announced three days later. He could not be reached for comment.
The November firing of Lou Raffetto, president and chief operating officer of the Maryland Jockey Club, drew anger from all sides. The change came two months after Magna bought the De Francis family's remaining interest in Pimlico and Laurel.
"I think it's one of the worst decisions the company has made," said De Francis, who had hired Raffetto to run the day-to-day operations of the Jockey Club in 2001. "I was very surprised when the decision came down, and as I said, I disagreed with it strongly."
Franzone, the Maryland Racing Commission chairman, credits Stronach for investing in the sport and in Maryland's racetracks as well as trying new things, such as the Horse Wizard despite its failure.
But he said Raffetto's firing was disturbing because he had developed a positive working relationship with both legislators and horsemen.
Raffetto declined to comment for this article.
"All I've seen from Frank's generals is dysfunction. I haven't met one yet that has impressed me. I've seen millions of them come down here and say they're going to do this and that, and they don't do it. And Frank ends up firing the guy. That's the No. 1 problem that I see in Magna," Franzone said.
Says Roncelli, "I believe Frank's heart is in the right place. Carrying it out, he didn't have the right people who could stand up to him."
