BANGOR – City councilors and staff last week visited a West Virginia racetrack casino.

The purpose of the trip, however, was not recreation. Their aim was to learn more about Penn National Gaming, the company with which the city will be doing business as Maine’s first racino project gets off the ground.

Bangor officials each spring travel to Washington, D.C., to take part in the National League of Cities Conference, where they attend workshops and sessions with their counterparts from across the nation, as well as meetings with members of Maine’s Congressional delegation.

The decision to add a visit to Charles Town Races & Slots to their itinerary was made earlier this year, after Penn National acquired development rights at city-owned Bangor Raceway from Shawn Scott and his company, Capital Seven LLC.

Council Chairman Dan Tremble and Councilor Frank Farrington were among the local officials who made the trip. Both said reports they received were favorable.

“I was pleasantly surprised,” Tremble said Wednesday. “They run a first-class operation there. I think they’re clearly the type of company we want to deal with as we move forward [on the Bangor racino project]. I think it will be a good relationship.”

Farrington, who also consulted with Episcopalian clergy and YMCA officials as part of his probe into Penn’s performance, called the visit “worthwhile.”

He said what he learned during the visit led him to conclude Penn was a good corporate citizen that supported local charities and insti1tutions.

“I was impressed with the operation,” he said. “They don’t want any trouble. My impression is that they would fit in with our kind of people.”

While Councilor Geoffrey Gratwick said he wasn’t a fan of gambling, he did hear that Penn had a reputation as a reputable organization. Talks with local people were “reassuring of the impact of a racino on our community.”

Among the local officials with whom the Bangor delegation consulted was Jefferson County Sheriff Ed Boober. Councilor Gerry Palmer noted Boober is a Bucksport native. To that end, Palmer believed Bangor officials “got the straight story.”

Bangor Police Chief Don Winslow, who also visited the West Virginia racino, said authorities there characterized its impact on crime and traffic as “minimal.”

The West Virginia racino, which features thoroughbred racing and 3,500 slot machines, is one of several gaming properties operated by Penn National.

Bangor officials arrived at the racetrack Thursday evening for dinner and meetings with Penn National corporate officials and members of Charles Town’s management team.

On Friday, the councilors returned to the track for tours and went into the surrounding community to speak with Jefferson County officials and residents.