Beirut Hippodrome of Lebanese Heritage (APLH), the court suspended on May 31, 2012 the Culture Ministry's decision, N˚ 849, to dismantle the Roman Hippodrome that would have allowed for the construction of a building project on the site. The site is protected for now. The current Beirut Hippodrome, officially called Hippodrome du parc de Beyrouth, is a horse-racing facility in Beirut's Horsh district adjacent to Badaro. In 1893 the “al-Marmah” hippodrome was founded, in the town of Bir Hassan. Wealthy Beirutis wished to create a club-complex that included a western style hippodrome and casino. In 1916, the wali of Beirut Azmi Bey,
Hippodrome of Berytus organized protests as an attempt to reverse the Culture Ministry's decision to allow the building over the hippodrome. Following the litigation brought by APLH, the court suspended on May 31, 2012 the Culture Ministry's decision, N˚ 849, to dismantle the Roman Hippodrome that would have allowed for the construction of a building project on the site. The site was protected until 2015 when construction began again. Hippodrome of Berytus The hippodrome of Berytus was a circus in the Roman colony of Berytus (modern-day Beirut). It is one of two hippodromes in Beirut. The hippodrome was built close to the port