Anne Arundel, Cordish, MJC/LRL jostling; Mall slots zoning OK'd
 

http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/mar...,7834773.story

County council meeting now but may not vote on the zoning tonight...

I am in the market for a MD bred that can run a 50 BSF..Great news

great timing, only about 12 years too late.....and on the eve of jefferson county, wv getting table games

way to stay ahead of the curve MD...thanks glendening:rolleyes:

-bt-

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn...120704020.html

But the fate of the proposed facility, at an Anne Arundel County outlet mall, remained unclear. At a County Council meeting Monday, debate on a separate local zoning bill was expected to stretch late into the evening, and neighboring homeowners turned out in large numbers in opposition.

Arundel delays slots decision

http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/mar...,7641631.story

The Anne Arundel County Council deferred a decision on a critical step for the initiative - zoning approval - just hours after it cleared an important hurdle. After impassioned testimony Monday night, the council chose unanimously to postpone voting on zoning measures because one member was absent with heart palpitations, another recused himself and a third resigned for a new position.

I told you - AA County Council are a bunch of gutless pols.....

Philly park is right down the road for the better stock.. Penn Nat is another 100 miles not the end of the world. Purses are fine you can make a few bucks etc etc.. Let Md. racing go already

Old habits are hard to break......:)

Live in MD, work in MD, have raced for 15 years in MD - easy to get to the barn to see the horses, easy to get to Pim and Laurel for races, etc, etc....

I understand Maryland should have been a leader in the industry. It is steeped it traddition and its horrible Pa. and Delaware and now Indyfrigginana is replacing it.. The horse has left the barn

Pretty soon they'll just have slots in every food store and diner.

I'd be ok with that.

ATR
 

Alan Foreman sounds like a great guy who has an undying love for our industry. Lord knows racing could use 20 Alan Foreman's.

I disagree with Foreman on a portion of his interview. When Steve and Alan were tracing back the steps of Maryland's demise, Foreman was quick to lay all the blame on Magna. This was coming way before Magna. Magna was just the straw that broke.......
In the mid to late 90's, Maryland (Governor Glendening and Co.) was fully aware of what was happening in the surrounding states. They sat back idly for 10 plus years and did nothing! I know that Las Vegas gaming companies reached out to the state way before Magna and they were basically told to take a hike. The Delaware Handicap purse reached a million bucks. Charlestown built a great casino/hotel that is only a 50 minute drive from greater DC. Then more recently Philly Park. It didn't matter if the purchaser was Magna or another group....the state screwed up.

It's a real shame to see the industry crumble. Thousands of jobs will be affected. Not to mention the tradition of the Preakness.

I agree that all of this can't be laid at Magna's feet.

If I had to finger someone, it would be Joe DeFrancis. Years ago, when Glendenning was Gov, there was some movement on a slots deal and it seemed that it was going to get done. Then Baltimore Mayor, Kurt Schmoke, made an announcement about Glendenning supporting a slots deal whereby they'd be put at the tracks.

http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1G1-56837209.html (Note the date - 1996)

Glendenning was on vacation at the time and when he returned, he was fuming. He swore that slots would never come to MD as long as he was Gov.

Then there was the issue where Joe arranged for campaign contributions to the Glendenning campaign that exceeded campaign limits. Joe eventually was indicted

http://articles.baltimoresun.com/199...cis-race-track

and he got a slap on the wrist and a fine, but Glendenning ended up with egg on his face and was hell-bent on putting Joe out of business.

There are many others within the current MD House and Senate that remain at odds with Joe and if he returns as the track's owner......

Interesting "Fact/Fiction" on Laurel and Anne Arundel slots..
http://www.hometownannapolis.com/new...e-elusive.html

Laurel vows to fight casino approval
By Matt Hegarty

http://www.drf.com/news/article/109672.html

The racing industry in Maryland vowed on Monday night to push back against the approval of a zoning measure that would allow the construction of a casino in Arundel Mills Mall near Laurel Park.

The approval by the Anne Arundel County Council caps a 10-month effort by the Cordish Cos. to get local go-aheads for the casino, which could be the largest in Maryland, housing 4,750 slot machines. The council voted 4 to 2 to issue a zoning permit for the casino on Monday night, over objections from local anti-gambling groups and Laurel's owners, who want a casino of their own.

The Cordish Cos. applied for the right to build the casino after Maryland voters approved a referendum last year allowing five casinos in the state, including one in Anne Arundel County, where Laurel Park is located. Laurel Park, through its parent company Magna Entertainment, also applied to operate a casino in the county, but its application was thrown out because Magna did not include a $28.5 million fee associated with the application.

After the vote, Laurel's general manager, Tom Chuckas, said in a statement that Laurel planned to join with anti-gambling groups in sponsoring a petition to overthrow the county vote. Laurel and its sister track, Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, are operated by a Magna subsidiary called the Maryland Jockey Club.

"The Maryland Jockey Club will fully support the counter initiative sponsored by the group Stop Slots at Arundel Mills Mall to bring this issue back to the voters of Anne Arundel County, who deserve the right to determine if a mall is what they wanted for gaming," Chuckas said. "We are going to continue to pursue all of our legal options and exhaust all means and measures to continue this fight."

Building fans for this sport is not done through subsidies from other gambling endeavors yet that seems to be the only thing I ever hear.

AA County Executive signs Arundel Mills bill - vetos Laurel Park option.

http://wbal.com/apps/news/templates/...42186&zoneid=2

Chuckas, DeFrancis and Magna will now do everything they can to finish the job of completely killing racing in MD because Laurel Park won't be getting a slots license. Tom Chuckas is an utter disgrace......

Help me with this as obviously I am missing something....

1) Years of legislative work to put slots in Md ended with MAGNA,in it's current pathetic financial state, failing to put up the 18 million necessary to be considered for a slot license.

2) Legislature makes 3 licenses available provided no 2 licenses are setup in a single county.

3) Party who followed every rule, deadline, and provided the upfront money necessary for a licenses announces plans to build slot parlor.

Now MAGNA who refused to participate in the bidding process and has said no facility will be built by MAGNA at Laurel is now collecting 18K signatures to stop construction of a slots parlor because it is too close to Laurel.

Why should anyone care or side with MAGNA??????

I keep wondering when we are going to hear from the Maryland Thoroughbred Horsemen's Association, and, more specifically, its president Richard Hoffberger on this. The MD horsemen need to take a stance here and let it be known.

In my opinion as a MD horse owner, the last thing we need is more delay in getting slots revenue to pump up our purses.