- Churchill Downs acquired del Lago Resort and is awaiting approval.
- Instead, the commission focused on casino expansion elsewhere.
- Churchill Downs continues their efforts to expand in gambling.
NEW YORK – Churchill Downs is looking to continue their expansion. But, a New York State Gaming Commission (NYSGC) meeting delayed this idea for a month.
Churchill Downs signed to obtain assets of Peninsula Pacific Entertainment in February. This included the del Lago Resorts & Casino. Looking for the commission’s approval, this will have to wait until November.
Instead, in a meeting on Monday, the NYSGC set up a panel for expanding casinos in New York. Quenia A. Abreu, Vicki L. Been, and Stuart Rabinowitz form the panel.
A New York City casino would be the main focus of the project, but adding three casinos is in the plan’s development.
This comes as an agreement which ended the upstate NY casino exclusivity.
With two more panel seats to add, the majority was to be set by Monday. The board will focus licensing proposals. They’ll also decide on who gets to present to the commission in hopes to pay the $500 million+ license fees.
Some state that Yonkers’ Empire City Casino is a favorite to receive a license. The other is Resorts World New York City in Queens.
“There is no preconceived way…that anybody is going into this process as either the favorite or not the favorite,” said Commission Chair Brian O’Dwyer.
A decision on who will license the new New York casinos won’t release until 2023. First, the board must set the casino license fee and tax rates, set to released in January.
Back to Churchill Downs
This is just one of the advancements of gambling that Churchill Downs is exploring. In September, they acquired Henederson racetrack Ellis Park for $79 million. They also expanded their poker mindset, completing their acquisition of Chasers Poker Room.