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STATE-BY-STATE NEWS UPDATE: The Racing States/Fourth Quarter ARIZONA "We've said all along that's what they really want," said David LaSarte, executive director of the Arizona Indian Gaming Association. "It comes as no surprise to us. I believe this has been the goal of the racetracks all along," he said. LaSota, a former Arizona attorney general, said that no other state racetrack has joined TGP in asking for slot machines. "We'd like to think we're the lead dog," he said. The meeting was called by state Rep. Steve Tully, R-Phoenix, who is preparing an Indian gaming bill for the next legislative session that begins in January. The gaming bill is in response to a July 3 ruling from U.S. District Court Judge Robert Broomfield in a lawsuit filed by Arizona dog and horse tracks. Broomfield declared the state's Indian gaming compacts unconstitutional, and ruled that Gov. Jane Hull did not have the authority to negotiate new compacts with the state's 15 tribes that operate casinos. Among his conclusions, Broomfield said the problem could be readily "cured by the Arizona Legislature with the enactment of a law declaring Indian gaming legal." Tucson's morning newspaper, The Arizona Daily Star, took a strong position against slot machines for TGP in an editorial published Oct. 22. The following are excerpts: "The faltering greyhound racing industry has been propped up for nearly a decade by the State of Arizona through tax breaks and other concessions aimed at keeping it afloat despite steep declines in public interest and attendance. "The extent to which the Tucson track still serves the community is debatable. Public attendance has plummeted over the last decade, a slide that started even before Native American casinos opened. "The track has not paid any pari-mutuel taxes to the state since 1995: it has received millions in tax breaks because its earnings are so weak. "Painful as it may be for some people to acknowledge, Tucson Greyhound Park may be a casualty of changing times and evolving public sensibilities about what constitutes 'entertainment.' "At some point, state lawmakers are going to have to draw the line: They cannot simply keep approving new bailout plans for a private business that seems headed toward eventual extinction." Sources: The Arizona Republic: Tom Zoellner The Arizona Daily Star ARKANSAS "Instant Racing" was developed by Race Tech, Inc., a joint venture between AmTote, Inc. and Oaklawn. The machines contain films of old races electronically stored with the dogs' statistics. Players drop in two quarters, one for the race they are running and one to bet against other people playing similar games. The player picks three dogs to win, place or show and then starts the film. A player who hits the jackpot is credited for all the second quarters bet by the other players on the same network of machines. "Every time they have introduced a new game, it has created new interest," said Barry Baldwin, Southland's general manager. The latest version, he said, has more bells and whistles than ever. "We have found out that what people like are graphics, sounds, special effects," Jackson said. Instant Racing was developed to help the tracks compete with casinos. AmTote president Ted Mudge said about $15 million has been wagered on Instant Racing games. [Southland's live wagering handle fell 72 percent from 1991 to 2000, from $204.3 million to $58.2 million. - Ed.] Source: The Associated Press COLORADO The agreement also includes a 10-year purchase option that would transfer the entire track property to McWhinney if Cloverleaf fails to redevelop the site according to the developer's stringent guidelines. McWhinney has been negotiating with Cloverleaf's owners for three years for control of the property because the track's four-story grandstand looms over the Centerra development. Cloverleaf general manager Joe Pardi said that under terms of the agreement, the track owners would most likely redevelop the existing site into a one-level facility that would conform to Centerra's design standards. Pardi said that whatever Centerra developers do with the site can only benefit Cloverleaf, should the track operators choose to stay. "The McWhinneys operate very well, and do very high-quality work," Pardi said. "Whatever they do with that 92 acres is going to make the other 40 that we have all the more desirable." Source: Northern Colorado Business Review FLORIDA Reese ordered that Sousa, 27, serve 50 years for the first attempted murder count and 50 years for the second count of attempted murder, and added five years for the aggravated assault charge. The sentences are to be served consecutively. Sousa was sentenced under the new 10-20-Life law that went into effect in 1999. The law mandates stiff sentences when a firearm is fired during the commission of a crime and up to life in prison if someone is seriously injured. Prosecutors told jurors that on Dec. 14, 1999, Sousa went to the dog track to play poker, but became agitated and began shouting obscenities. At about 10:30 p.m., track Security Director Phillip Bocelli said he thought Sousa had been drinking too much and cut off the supply of alcohol. Bocelli followed Sousa as he was leaving and saw him pull a .357-caliber handgun from a holster and point it at parking attendant Thomas Nagel's head, threatening to pull the trigger. Bocelli said he tried to grab Sousa from behind but Sousa shot him in the stomach. Concession manager Andy Verchick was shot as he attempted to stop Sousa from kicking the already wounded Bocelli. Assistant State Attorney Anthony Kunasek said this is one of the first 10-20-Life cases that have gone to trial in the 20th Judicial Circuit. "I think it sends a strong message to the community regarding firearms," he said. Source: Bonita Daily News: Mary Kelli Bridges Hallandale Beach: The cities of Hollywood and Hallandale Beach have been arguing over the name of the Hollywood Greyhound Track for at least 18 years. The greyhound track is actually located in nearby Hallandale Beach and officials of that city want the track to be renamed Hallandale Beach Dog Track. The latest attempt to persuade the track to change its name has failed. Hallandale Beach Mayor Dorothy Ross, in a recent letter to Dan Adkins, the track's general manager, wrote, "This change would recognize the City of Hallandale Beach as your host city and would be a more accurate representation of the dog track's location. It would be like the prodigal son returning home." Adkins said in reply that changing the name would be too costly and detrimental to the track's reputation. "To change the name of the facility would result in confusion around the racing and simulcasting industry and could even possibly jeopardize some of our simulcasting relationships," he said. The track simulcasts to 150 venues around the world. Adkins said he "respects and understands" the city's needs and would change the track's advertisements to read: "Hollywood Greyhound Track located in the City of Hallandale Beach." Source: Sun-Sentinel: Kai T. Hill Keysville: Hillsborough County sheriff's deputies arrested Geneva Louise Edwards, 47, Tuesday, Nov. 13, and charged her with three counts of felony animal cruelty and 43 misdemeanor counts of taking improper care of animals. Lt. Rod Reder of the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office said Pasco County authorities investigating a case of 15 stolen greyhounds believed to be at Edwards' mobile home contacted them for assistance. Deputies from both agencies went to the home and found 46 dogs of various breeds inside with no food or water. The home also had no electricity. Three of the dogs were dead when authorities arrived and the remaining 43 dogs were taken to Hillsborough Animal Control. The dead dogs were not identified by breed and it was not immediately known whether the stolen greyhounds were among the recovered dogs. The stolen greyhounds, estimated to be worth about $50,000, were reported missing from the Spirit of Greyhound Kennels Sunday night, Nov. 11. Edwards, whose bail was set at $46,500, was also charged with the theft of the greyhounds, said Jon Powers, a spokesman for the Pasco County Sheriff's Office. Later in the week, additional charges were filed against Edwards when sheriff's officials realized that she had used her daughter's name when she was arrested. The charges included theft of personal identification, unauthorized use of identification, and providing a false name to law enforcement officers. Source: Tampa Tribune: Keith Morelli, Karlayne R. Parker IOWA During the past fiscal year, the track paid more than $10 million in state taxes, based on a 30 percent tax of its revenue from 600 slot machines. By contrast, the association's riverboat casino is taxed at a rate of 20 percent. The taxing system, in effect since 1997, increases state taxes on racetrack casino revenues by 2 percent each year until it reaches 36 percent in 2004. The state's tracks -the Dubuque and Bluffs Run racetrack casinos and the Prairie Meadows horse track and casino - filed a lawsuit against the state contending that the tax rate is unconstitutional, but a Polk County District Court judge ruled against them in December 2000. An appeal is pending with the Iowa Supreme Court. The live wagering handle has fallen by 95 percent at the Dubuque track since a peak of $66.9 million was wagered in 1988. Last year, $3.1 million was wagered on live races at the track. An additional $4.5 million was wagered on simulcast races from other tracks. Source: The Des Moines Register: William Petroski MASSACHUSETTS The age of the building, coupled with its size and the lack of an indoor sprinkler system, made the fire difficult to fight for the 23 local fire brigades responding. Explosions could be seen and heard more than two hours after the fire was reported. The blaze was so intense that several hundred cars parked in the area suffered heat damage. The cause of the fire is under investigation. The Taunton Dog Track operated for 44 years from June 19, 1935 to Dec. 10, 1981. During the 1980s and early 1990s the old track was the home of the Rehoboth Fair. In recent years it became the Taunton Expo Center, one of the largest indoor flea markets in New England. Source: Taunton Daily Gazette: Charles Winokoor, Jim Stern WEST VIRGINIA Scott Cooper, the track's president and general manager, said the expansion could start early next year, pending approval by the lottery commission, state racing commission, Wheeling city officials, and other regulators. "We're relatively amenity-poor right now," Cooper said. "We'd like to change that." The track's kennel compound would be moved to a nearby West Virginia location to allow the new additions to be built on high ground above Wheeling Island's flood plain. Track management has also requested an additional 600-plus slot machines to bring the total up to 2,400. The lottery commission will hold a public hearing on the request in January. In other news, Sportsystems Corp., a subsidiary of Buffalo, New York-based Delaware North, will pay $105 million to become sole owner of the greyhound track. Sportsystems currently owns 50 percent of the track and the other half is owned by WHX Entertainment Corp. The West Virginia Racing Commission and the state Lottery Commission must approve the purchase, which is expected to be finalized by Dec. 31. "Because Delaware North and Sportsystems have been responsible for the majority of the development and operation at Wheeling Downs, the transaction should be seamless to the more than 1 million visitors each year," said Sportsystems spokeswoman Wendy Watkins. Sources: The Charleston Gazette: Rick Steelhammer The Buffalo News: Lisa Haarlander WISCONSIN The lawsuit also seeks to prevent Gov. Scott McCallum from conducting any negotiations to extend tribal gaming compacts, alleging that negotiations have already begun without proper advance notice. McCallum aide Tim Roby said no state-tribal negotiations to extend the current compacts have occurred. Ironically, Dairyland had been in partnership with the Menominee Nation for nearly a decade, trying to obtain federal and state approval to open a tribal casino at the track. The partnership ended several months ago when the tribe formally withdrew its application to the U.S. Bureau of Indian Affairs after it became clear state officials would not approve it. Roy Berger, Dairyland's executive vice president, said, "We are absolutely convinced that casino gaming is illegal in this state, and all we're asking for is a level playing field." Between 1991 and 2000, Dairyland's live wagering handle fell from $170 million to $40.5 million, a 76 percent decline. Competition from tribal casinos is blamed for the decline. Reacting to the lawsuit, Attorney General Jim Doyle said he would defend the state - and win. "The original compacts were perfectly legitimate," Doyle said. "As long as you're talking about the renewal of the original compacts, I don't think there's any problem." The gaming compacts with 11 tribes begin to expire in 2003. In other Dairyland news, state gaming regulators conducted a sweeping inspection of the track's 18 kennels and confiscated an undisclosed number of items, including hypodermic needles, drugs, and powders. The confiscated items were sent to a lab for analysis. State Gaming Administrator Scott Scepaniak said the gaming board began doing full sweeps of kennels because inspections of individual kennels allow time for the word to get around and employees have time to hide or dispose of contraband. Armed agents of the Wisconsin Division of Criminal Investigations were also involved in the inspection. Source: Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Steven Walters, Dave Engels
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