Bangor council sets June 10 ‘racino’ referendum

BANGOR – City councilors set June 10 as the date for a citywide referendum on the use of video lottery terminals, or slot machines, at Bass Park, home of the city’s historic harness racing track.

Developer Capital Seven, which is negotiating a $30 million development deal with the city, requested the June vote, one of two approvals needed before slots can be installed here. Spokesman Daryn Demeritt said that 1,500 slot machines would be installed initially and that more units might be added, if warranted.

In a related measure, councilors established an escrow account for the $10,000 Capital Seven will provide to offset any extra costs the city might incur as a result of conducting a special election in June rather than November.

Owned by Nevada businessman Shawn Scott, Capital Seven LLC is the company that now operates Bangor Raceway. Scott and his company hope to develop a $30 million entertainment complex at Bass Park.

The city granted Capital Seven tentative developer status, or exclusive negotiating rights, for the city-owned track in late January. The two parties have until May 1 to put together a mutually acceptable development deal.

Company officials propose what’s called a “racino,” industry jargon for a racetrack with slots. The idea, they say, is to bolster the declining sport of harness racing by combining it with gaming and entertainment.

The extent of development that actually occurs here, however, hinges on the availability of slots, which would require approval at statewide and local referendums.

“A June vote is critical to bringing our plan for Bass Park to fruition,” Hoolae Paoa, Capital Seven’s chief executive officer, said during the hearing.

Paoa said a positive vote in Bangor in June would bolster Capital Seven’s chances of winning statewide approval in November, when Maine voters also will consider a tribal casino.

Approval of the June vote request followed a public hearing during which only two residents spoke.

Edward Rudnicki of Norway Road said it seemed premature to schedule a citywide vote regarding a development proposal that the public knows little about. Among the unknowns, he noted, were the racino’s hours of operation and how much traffic it would generate.

“It feels a little rushed to me,” he said.

Ruth Shook, who lives two blocks from Bass Park, asked the council to consider a November vote, which would yield a higher turnout. She also asked for more opportunities to hear about project specifics.

“I feel very much in the dark,” she said.

Before the public hearing, during the meeting’s public comment period, Clark Thompson of Essex Street told councilors that he developed an alternate layout for Bass Park that would preserve its historic half-mile track and enhance its agricultural fair facilities.

Thompson, a Bass Park historian who has conducted walking tours of the famous Bangor racetrack, has dated the track to 1883. He said he shared the plan with City Solicitor Norman Heitmann and wanted to make sure other city officials had a chance to consider it.

Capital Seven officials propose changing the existing track to a ?-mile track, but earlier said they were open to suggestions.

The June vote request was approved in a 6-1 vote, with Mayor Nichi Farnham and councilors Anne Allen, Michael Crowley, Frank Farrington, Richard Greene and Gerry Palmer voting for a June vote.

Councilor Dan Tremble cast the sole opposing vote. He said conducting the referendum in November would result in a more representative decision. He also said the slots decision should be held to the same standards as a charter change, which requires participation by 30 percent of the number of voters who participated in the last gubernatorial election.