
Massachusetts Slots Referendum Progresses
A ballot question that would allow a slot machine parlor near Suffolk Downs has cleared a hurdle and could appear on the statewide Massachusetts ballot in November.
A ballot question that would allow a slot machine parlor near Suffolk Downs has cleared a hurdle and could appear on the statewide Massachusetts ballot in November.
A day after the Massachusetts Gaming Commission took no action June 11 on the supplemental application by Suffolk Downs for three days of live racing in 2015, local horsemen remained deeply divided on the plan.
Group expresses strong opposition to the supplemental application of Suffolk Downs to conduct three days of live racing in 2015 at Massachusetts Gaming Commission hearing.
Unionized employees of Suffolk Downs have sued the Massachusetts Gaming Commission contending it violated the law when it selected Wynn Resorts for a casino license instead of the track's gaming partner, Mohegan Sun.
A request by Suffolk Downs that the Massachusetts Gaming Commission reconsider its decision to award its Boston area casino license to Wynn Resorts didn't get out of the starting gate at a public hearing Oct. 9.
The New England Horseman's Benevolent and Protective Association submitted an application Oct. 1 to the Massachusetts Gaming Commission to conduct a live meet at Suffolk Downs next year.
As live racing at Suffolk Downs winds down for the season, and likely forever, the Massachusetts Gaming Commission is seeking options for the continuation of Thoroughbred racing in the state.
As live racing draws to a close at Suffolk Downs, track officials are extending the meet by one day so that the 79-year-old track where Hall of Famers Seabiscuit, Whirlaway, John Henry, Skip Away and Cigar once raced.
Tough decisions lie ahead for the horsemen and workers of the Boston-area track, which is expected to shut down permanently in December.
The Massachusetts Gaming Commission said no dice to the state's Thoroughbred racing and breeding industry when it cast a preliminary 3-1 vote Sept. 16 in favor of awarding the sole Boston area casino license to Wynn Resorts.
The Massachusetts Thoroughbred racing and breeding industry was dealt a devastating blow when the Massachusetts Gaming Commission decided to award the sole Boston-area casino license to Wynn Resorts.
Horsemen and Suffolk Downs employees took advantage of their final opportunity to speak in support of a casino at the track during a Massachusetts Gaming Commission hearing Aug. 11.
Development plans are starting on the non-casino side of the racetrack property. Any improvements are still contingent on Suffolk Downs' casino partner, Mohegan Sun, being granted a gaming license.
The future of live Thoroughbred racing in New England became cloudier June 24 after the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court ruled that a referendum to repeal the state's casino law may appear on the November ballot.
As Suffolk Downs prepares to open its 2014 meet May 3, a heavy cloud of uncertainty about the future of live racing hangs over the sole surviving Thoroughbred racetrack in New England.
New England horsemen voice their support for the proposed $1.3 billion Mohegan Sun casino development at Suffolk Downs at a public hearing March 25.
The New Hampshire House of Representatives, which has killed every piece of casino legislation in modern times, again rejected expanded gambling March 13 by a vote of 173-144.
Voters in Revere, Mass., overwhelmingly backed Suffolk Downs and gaming partner Mohegan Sun in their plan to develop a world-class destination resort casino on the grounds of the 79-year-old track.
An agreement between the New England Horsemen's Benevolent & Protective Association and the management of Suffolk Downs on a conditional deal for the 2014 meet was reached Feb. 22, but terms must still be decided.
The head of Mohegan Sun said Jan. 22 live Thoroughbred racing will be preserved at Suffolk Downs should the gaming giant prove successful in winning the sole destination resort casino designated for the Boston area.
Suffolk Downs said Jan. 9 it is committed to live racing should its new partner, Mohegan Sun, win the license to build a casino on track property.
Mohegan Sun has submitted its final application to the Massachusetts Gaming Commission for a license to build a destination resort casino on land owned by Suffolk Downs.
The Revere, Mass., city council has set Feb. 25, 2014, as the date for a referendum election on the city's host community agreement with Mohegan Sun for a proposed $1 billion casino at Suffolk Downs racetrack.
Mohegan Sun and Revere, Mass., said Dec. 23 they have reached a host community agreement that would guarantee the city between $25 million and $30 million in revenue per year from a proposed casino at Suffolk Downs.
The Massachusetts Gaming Commission Dec. 10 decided that another referendum must be held in the city of Revere on a proposed $1 billion casino for Suffolk Downs and partner Mohegan Sun.
Suffolk Downs remained in the running for a casino license with the Nov. 27 announcement it has reached an agreement with Mohegan Sun, which operates gaming facilities in Connecticut, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania.
MGM Mirage is back in the hunt to develop New York City's only legal casino with word emerging May 14 that it has joined forces with two other entities trying to win the bid for a sprawling new gambling facility at Aqueduct Racetrack.
Trying one more time, the state of New York accepted seven new bids - from major casino operators to real estate and racing interests -- to develop a casino at Aqueduct racetrack, an authority first approved for the facility back in 2001.
The three bidders vying for lucrative rights to develop a casino at Aqueduct racetrack in New York have all passed a critical background check by the state, Governor David Paterson said July 20.
First Defence made his initial effort on grass a winning one for trainer Bobby Frankel and became a graded stakes winner in the process, just holding on by a head to capture the $162,966 Jaipur (gr. III) on Belmont Park's yielding course June 15.
Seven entities have expressed interest in running a future video lottery terminal casino at Aqueduct, including several Indian-owned gambling companies, the Spitzer administration said Oct. 15.
In an Aug. 23 presentation at the Saratoga Hotel and Conference Center in Saratoga Springs, N.Y., Capital Play CEO Karl O'Farrell called Saratoga Race Course the "crown jewel of New York racing" and pledged his company's commitment to maintaining the historical significance of the track should Capital Play gain the governor's recommendation for the 20-year franchise to operate Belmont, Aqueduct, and Saratoga race courses.
New York Gov. Eliot Spitzer is asking the four entities vying for the state's Thoroughbred franchise to re-submit their bidding packages to reflect changes made in their structure and plans over the past year. He also opened the door for any of the existing bidders to join forces in a joint venture deal.
Mohegan Sun, which operates one of the world's most successful casinos in Connecticut, has formed a partnership with one of the bidders hoping to run Thoroughbred racing in New York state.
At a March 20 statehouse rally in Boston, hundreds of local horsemen, track employees, city mayors, and labor leaders pressed lawmakers for action on a proposal that would add 2,000 slot machines at each of the state's four pari-mutuel facilities.