Racino Slot machine initiative headed toward passage

BANGOR – With results from more than 88 percent of the state’s voting precincts in, Question 2, the slot machine initiative, appeared to have passed.

As of 1 a.m. Wednesday, the ballot initiative that would allow Maine’s commercial racetracks to install slot machines was ahead 53.2 percent to 46.8 percent.

“This is exciting for Bangor,” outgoing Bangor Mayor Nichi Farnham said Tuesday night. “With this, we can help [the gaming industry] to save harness racing.”

The racino in Bangor would be the first of its kind in Maine.

“The state now has given this region opportunity to pursue this project and that’s confidence,” she said. “I think this is exciting. At least we’re going to get the chance to try it.”

With the apparent passage of the referendum question, however, a racino in Maine might not be a sure thing.

Gov. John Baldacci, an opponent of both the racino and tribal casino project, is among those who believe that the racino “slid under the radar” because most of the attention was focused on the larger tribal casino issue. It was only until last week, he said, that people began to understand the issue and the point spread between supporters and opponents began to tighten.

“I intend to respect the wishes of the people, but I will also be scrutinizing this issue, and if I feel this is a little more than the people bargained for we may have to have another vote on it,” the governor said late Tuesday night.

Question 2 on the Nov. 4 statewide ballot asked voters if Maine should allow slot machines to be installed at the state’s commercial harness racing tracks – Bangor Raceway and Scarborough Downs. The idea was to bolster the struggling sport of harness racing by introducing new revenues and attracting new fans.

In recent decades, harness racing struggled in Maine as attendance shrank. In Bangor, where a private corporation rents the racetrack facility from the city, critics have complained that harness racing was draining local tax money because of operating losses in the ’80s and ’90s.

Nationally, racetracks have lost money to such competitors as Internet betting, bingo and scratch tickets.

Maine is among more than a dozen states where harness racing supporters have been looking to slot machines to generate new revenues for racetracks, as well as for ailing state and local coffers.

Fred Nichols of Bangor Historic Track, the company that operates the city’s racetrack, said Tuesday that the outcome of the statewide vote could make or break Maine’s harness racing industry that supports some 2,000 jobs and contributes an estimated $50 million a year to the state’s economy, according to a recent study.

While the industry has fallen on hard times in recent years, largely due to an eroding fan base, Nichols was not yet ready to pronounce it dead, even if Question 2 failed.

“We’re survivors. It just gets tougher every year,” Nichols said.

At stake in Bangor was a $30 million redevelopment plan for Bangor Raceway at city-owned Bass Park. A “yes” vote during Tuesday’s statewide election was one of the requirements Capital Seven LLC, owned by Hawaiian entrepreneur Shawn Scott, needed if the company is to develop Maine’s first racetrack casino, or racino as it is called in the gaming industry.

Last fall, Scott’s representatives approached the city with a proposal to develop Maine’s first racino at Bangor Raceway in Bass Park.

“I’m delighted with the great turnout and favorable vote that will assure financial assistance to residents of the great state of Maine,” Scott said in a statement issued late Tuesday night.

Scott said that by passing the measure, Mainers had ensured economic relief for Bangor Raceway and Scarborough Downs and allowed Capital Seven to move forward with its plans to construct a casino and entertainment complex for Bangor’s historic Bass Park.

“Not only will revenues generated by slot machines at the two harness tracks enhance the state’s racing and agriculture industry, but they will also provide lower prescription drug costs for the elderly and scholarship aid for Maine residents,” he said. “This is a great day for everyone associated with this worthy project and I want to thank all those who supported this important issue,” he said.

“I think I’m still in shock,” an elated Capital Seven spokeswoman Victoria Scott said early Wednesday morning. “All of the work we’ve put into this for the past year has paid off. It’s just wonderful. Now we can do these things that we’ve talked about.”

The developer’s plans initially call for improvements to the city’s historic racetrack. However, the construction of a luxury hotel, gaming facility, conference center and other amenities hinged on slot machines at Bangor Raceway being approved in Tuesday’s statewide referendum.

Scott won local approval for the proposed racino in June. Last week, Scott completed a development contract and leases with the city of Bangor.

What Scott needs now is a state pari-mutuel racing license. In January, the Maine Harness Racing Commission issued Scott a conditional license for 2003, pending the results of a state-mandated background check. After a series of postponements, the proceedings were set to begin in mid-December.

The gambling question came before voters by way of a citizens’ initiative drive led by Best Bet for Maine, a political action committee financed by Scott.