Moonee Ponds, Victoria Moonee Ponds, Victoria Moonee Ponds is an inner suburb of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 7 km north-west from Melbourne's central business district. Its local government area is the City of Moonee Valley. At the 2011 Census, Moonee Ponds had a population of 13,532. Moonee Ponds is home to Queens Park and the Moonee Valley Racecourse. Moonee Ponds was named by Donald Kennedy after his native valley in Inverness-shire, Scotland. The Clocktower Centre was originally constructed as the Essendon Mechanics' Institute, which was later purchased by the State of Victoria to become the Essendon Town Hall. Today it is primarily used as
Horse Racing Ireland Horse Racing Ireland Horse Racing Ireland (HRI) is the governing body of horse racing on the island of Ireland. The HRI mission statement is "to develop and promote Ireland as a world centre of excellence for horse racing and breeding". Like most other sports, horse racing is run on an All Ireland basis, so Horse Racing Ireland is responsible for racing in both the Republic of Ireland, which has 24 racecourses, and in Northern Ireland, which has 2 racecourses. The remit of the British Horseracing Authority does not extend to Northern Ireland. HRI was founded in 2001, succeeding the Irish