2005 - Harness Tracks of America, Inc.

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HARNESS TRACKS OF AMERICAExecutive NewsletterA daily fax and e-mail report on racing and gaming developments in North America and beyondStanley F. Bergstein, Editor February 25, 2005CODEY WANTS BIG M SLOTS With the conviction, Leahy became persona nonGov. Richard J. Codey of New Jersey says he will grata at all Illinois tracks, and no entries will bepropose next week allowing video slot machines taken on horses owned by him.at the Meadowlands. Codey will present his budgetnext Tuesday, and some state officials sayVLTs at the track could generate between $100million and $150 million for the state in the firstfiscal year, and probably more than $200 millionafter that. Atlantic City casinos are certain tooppose the move, but Assemblywoman LindaStender, the Democratic chairwoman of the AssemblyTourism and Gaming Committee, said,“Since we’re facing a $4 billion deficit, any chanceto provide new revenue will be seriously considered.”LEAHY GUILTY OF MAIL FRAUDJohn J. Leahy, a prominent harness horse ownerand formerly a principal patron of the Joe Andersonstable, was found guilty of mail fraud yesterdayby a federal jury in Chicago. The chargesstemmed from an alleged scam involving $100million in contracts with the city of Chicago heldby the powerful Duff family, whose connections,according to the Chicago Sun-Times, “stretchfrom City Hall to organized crime.” Leahy, presidentof Leahy and Associates, an insurance brokeragein suburban Westchester, was found guiltyof mail fraud and wire fraud involving defraudinginsurance companies of as much as $3 millionby inaccurately describing the type of workbeing performed by day laborers supplied byJames Duff. The insurance brokers said that thework was largely clerical, greatly reducing thepremiums Duff had to pay. Mayor RichardDaley, who severed his ties to the Duffs after thefederal investigation began, defended them yesterday,according to the Sun-Times, which quotedhim as saying, “I know them, sure...they’re hardworking people. It’s an unfortunate incident.”When asked about the Duff’s allegedmob ties, Daley said, “Gee, I don’tknow about that.”FEDEX CRACKDOWN ON DRUGSHow many ads for online drugs appear on yourcomputer each day? Ten? Twenty? More? Accordingto the Associated Press, the problem ofdrug dealers and abusers doing online orderingfrom unlicensed Internet pharmacies has becomeso pervasive in some areas that legislatures arebeginning to take notice. State legislators in Kentuckyare pushing a bill to regulate such onlinesales of prescriptions drugs, which the attorneygeneral has called a cancer. The practice hasbecome so serious in eastern Kentucky thatFedEx has stopped deliveries from online pharmaciesthere, saying, “We don’t tolerate the useof our system for illegal purposes.” One sheriffin eastern Kentucky said things have gotten sobad that FedEx and UPS drivers are in dangerof being hijacked, and he called the situation “amonumental problem.”EQUINE HERPES GETS SERIOUSConfirmed cases of equine herpes, which haveclosed Northville Downs, are creating problemselsewhere. Northfield Park now requires proofof immunization with Pneumabort K vaccine,and a horse was destroyed at The Meadows aftera positive there, with the barn in which it wasstabled now quarantined for two weeks. Hardesthit of all was Truro Raceway in Nova Scotia,where nine cases have been discovered at or nearthe track.BEDFORD SELLS 30% SHAREBedford Downs, hoping to get the final harnesslicense in Pennsylvania but scuffling for financing,has agreed to sell a 30% equity interest toMerit Management Group, which openedthe Empress casino in Joliet, Illinois.
HARNESS TRACKS OF AMERICAExecutive NewsletterA daily fax and e-mail report on racing and gaming developments in North America and beyondStanley F. Bergstein, Editor February 28, 2005‘UNCERTAIN’ OPTIMISTIC VIEWYesterday’s Baltimore Sun ran a headline readingPROVINCIAL CUP DATE MOVEDWindsor Raceway has announced its 40th Pro-“Slots’ future still uncertain.” vincial Cup, the track’s showpiece pacing fea-Bloodhorse.com ran one reading, “DespiteProgress, Uncertainty Still Exists Over MarylandSlots.” Both are optimistic views. Although theHouse finally passed a slots bill last Friday, 71-66 -- the very bare minimum votes needed to passthe measure -- it is so far from what the Senateproposed, and so antithetical to governor RobertEhrlich’s views, that it seems more than anuncertainty that reconciliation will be possible.ture, has been rescheduled from its May 29 dateto an unannounced date in the fall. Track presidentJohn Millson, discussing the move, said, “Ittakes time for an operation the size of Windsorto return to normal after a disruption of operationssuch as we experienced in January. We wantto make sure that we are back to full steam andcelebrate the 40th anniversary milestone with allthe glamour and success that it deserves.”Racing attorney Alan Foreman, a keen observerof the Maryland and national scene, was on targetas usual when he said, “Any number of issuescould mean its downfall. There’s no wayfor anybody to feel one way or the other rightnow. There’s a long way to go yet.” The longestway to go still is Michael Busch, who says he willnot tolerate a single change to the House bill,which would mean Busch-induced doom onceThe postponement was met with displeasure byCanada’s most successful trainer, Bob McIntosh,who has patrons in his stable who want to builda new track in Windsor. McIntosh complainedthat he had nominated seven 3-year-old pacersto the race for $500 each and had another paymentdue March 15 without knowing when theevent was going to be raced.again. If the House were to prevail with its 9,500slots in four locations, only one racetrack -- Laurel-- would be eligible, with 30% going to theoperator and 3% to a fund for the first five yearsto be divided by all tracks in the state for capitalimprovements. Under the Senate bill, therewould be 15,500 slots with Laurel, Pimlico,Rosecroft and a still unbuilt Rickman familytrack in western Maryland sharing them.NORTHVILLE BACK TOMORROWHTA member Northville Downs, closed for threeweeks by an outbreak of equine herpes, is scheduledto reopen tomorrow with the lifting of thequarantine on ship-ins. New procedures will bein effect for horsemen, who will hear them firsthandat a meeting scheduled for tomorrow bythe office of the racing commissioner. A veterinarianwill be on hand to answer questionson the procedures and the disease,which has threatned other midwest tracks.SLOTS FINALISTS NAMED IN PAThere were 10 in the race when it started, butlast week the Pennsylvania Revenue Department,which is deciding who will provide the state’s61,000 slot machines, sent 8 home and narrowedthe race to 2. The survivors are, not surprisingly,Scientific Games Corporation, the favorite off 27years of partial operation of the Pennsylvanialottery system, and international giant GTECHcorporation.STILL TOUGH HURDLES IN FLEven if voters in Miami and Dade counties approveslots at tracks a week from tomorrow, substantialhurdles lie ahead. The legislature thenwould have to pass a law, which would cover taxrates, numbers of machines, and operating hours.The tracks are hoping for unrestricted hoursand a tax rate of somewhere around 31 or32%.
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2005 - Harness Tracks of America, Inc.

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