Gambling panel gives update on racino

BANGOR – The state’s Gambling Control Board took the show on the road last week when it came to Bangor to provide a status report on the Penn National Gaming Inc. racetrack casino headed for Bangor Raceway.

The idea was to bring area officials and the public up to speed on the project, which will bring up to 1,500 slot machines to the city as part of Penn National’s $75 million plan.

Gambling officials also discussed the status of legislation critical to the project.

Proposed are a gambling facility, multi-level parking garage and related improvements. Construction is slated to begin in late spring or early summer, barring any unforeseen snags.

During last week’s public briefing, gambling board Executive Director Robert Welch said the board decided to hold the information session in Bangor, the racino’s host city, because he’s repeatedly being asked “the same three or four questions about the program.

“Basically, I can’t get a hot cup of coffee in this town,” Welch, who lives in Bangor, quipped at the start of the presentation.

He was only partly joking. Bangor city councilors and staff say they’ve been fielding the same questions about the Bangor racino, namely, is it moving ahead? Is it ever going to open? When are the slots coming?

To that end, Welch said he and others involved in the project thought it was important that they “kind of give a report card back to the community” on where things stand.

Also on hand were state police Lt. Thomas Kelly, assigned to the gambling control unit, and two of the board’s five members, Jeanne Deighan of Bangor and W. Lawrence Hall of Dedham.

In response to the questions, Welch said, “Yes, it is going to open … This is not a project that [Penn National] wants to abandon.”

The question about when the slots would arrive was more difficult to answer, largely because it hinges on passage of a bill regarding the state’s ability to keep confidential some of the personal and corporate information gathered during licensing background checks for Penn National and applicants for other licenses.

The bill, reviewed by two legislative committees, has been tightened up and some of its most controversial aspects have been deleted.

The bill, LD 90, was still pending on Monday.

Though the bill’s sponsor, Sen. Joseph Perry, D-Bangor, couldn’t be reached for comment Monday afternoon, Rep. Charles “Dusty” Fisher, D-Brewer, said the bill could go before the Senate and House of Representatives as early as today.

“It would be my great hope that we would be dealing with the issue by the end of this week,” said Fisher, a member of the Legislature’s Legal and Veterans Affairs Committee, which has legislative jurisdiction over gambling.

“The time has come for us to dispose of this in a positive way and let Penn National get to business,” Fisher said.

In response to other frequently asked questions, Welch said:

. The Bangor racino is not expected to result in criminals from out of state moving here. Welch said the state has access to national casino criminal activity databases.

. Welch also said he’s not anticipating major problems with “drunken people and out of control crowds” because the racino “is not exempt from state liquor laws.”

. Traffic tie-ups also aren’t expected to be an ongoing problem because arrivals and departures of racino patrons will be staggered throughout the day, he said.

. Welch also didn’t anticipate major problems with late night noise. Security and surveillance throughout Penn’s complex “will eliminate a lot of people hanging around.”

The gambling control board’s next regular meeting is set for 12:30 p.m. Thursday, April 14, at the state Department of Public Safety’s Augusta headquarters.