Bangor Raceway request to add 16 race days OK’d

AUGUSTA – Officials and employees of Penn National Gaming Inc. and Bangor Historic Track have a lot more to be thankful for this Thanksgiving.

The Maine State Harness Racing Commission voted 5-0 Tuesday afternoon to grant conditional approval of Bangor Raceway’s request to add 16 harness racing dates to its 2006 racing calendar, four of which (two in April and two in November) make it a six-month operation.

The six-month time span and 44-day racing season are crucial for Bangor Raceway to switch its designation as a part-time, off-track betting and inter-track simulcast facility, which is how it operated last year, to a full-time, year-round, inter-track simulcast facility – a title which under Maine law entitles it to keep more of its profits.

“We’ve worked hard and we deserve it,” said Fred Nichols, Bangor Raceway’s general manager. “Sure it benefits us, but it also benefits the entire harness racing community. The way it’s set up, everyone benefits uniformly.”

Officials and representatives of Davric Maine Corp., owner and operator of Scarborough Downs, were on hand Tuesday to contest granting approval of Bangor Raceway’s request, but not the number of days. They were arguing against allowing Bangor to race in April and November, which allows Penn National to avoid sharing proceeds required of an OTB facility.

“The OTBs in Maine, which Scarborough helped to form by promoting the statute that created them, have always contributed money to all the tracks in Maine,” said Ed MacColl, a Portland lawyer representing Davric. “But now, by losing the OTB in Bangor and creating a simulcast facility that keeps a lot more of its money in Bangor and doesn’t share it with the other tracks, it will cost us about $200,000, … money Scarborough historically did get and money we felt Penn National, frankly, didn’t need.”

Penn National owns and operates Bangor Raceway as well as the recently opened Hollywood Slots slot-machine racino just down the road on Main Street in Bangor.

“There are benefits to that which Scarborough set up with the licensing statute and regulations. Ironically, now we can do it and they don’t like it,” Nichols said. “The people in Scarborough won’t get any more now, but they’ll get just as much as we do.”

At the meeting MSHRC officials provided estimates based on 2004 figures that Bangor Raceway will earn an additional $192,066.09 operating as a year-round inter-track wagering facility.

Nichols and MSHRC staff members estimate that Bangor Raceway’s conversion will pump an additional $54,000 into horsemen’s purses at Bangor in 2006. This point was brought up at Tuesday’s meeting after Scarborough representatives had commission staff members confirm that the state purse supplement fund would lose $129,836 with Bangor’s conversion.

Bangor Raceway and Scarborough Downs are Maine’s only tracks racing commercial meets. All others are tied to agricultural fairs.

Last season, Bangor Raceway ran a 28-day racing season.

“The primary emphasis was to get more days. I’ve always wanted more,” Nichols said. “I’m just so glad we got them.”

So is Jon Johnson, Penn National’s general manager of Bangor operations.

“We feel that today had a very positive outcome,” he said. “Obviously, additional race days equate to more employment for everyone, and the important part of all of this is the intent of the legislation, which is to give benefits to harness racing. I think additional racing days going to us as well as Scarborough accomplishes that.”

Scarborough Downs was granted approval to extend its season by 20 to 126 days.

“Scarborough Downs is pleased the number of race days in 2006 will be increasing again. It’s been decreasing for many years,” MacColl said. “It’s a banner day for harness racing. This [Bangor’s season expansion into April and November] is just one small setback for us on a banner day.”

Wednesday’s approval by the commission is not yet final. It will be ratified with a written decision at a Dec. 20 commission meeting. A 30-day appeals period will follow.

Extending the racing season to six months means Bangor Historic Track must have an electronic-video finish-line system installed. Sound system and heating and ventilation work currently under way must be completed.

“I hope to get most the current work done by the end of this month,” Nichols said.

A permanent enclosed and heated paddock to provide improved protection and comfort for the horses and harness workers must be built by April 1, 2006.

“We have to convert a barn into a paddock,” Nichols said. “All the smaller paddocks will come down and we’ll build a big, all-weather concrete paddock with 96 stalls.”

Bangor Raceway hosted at least one November meet, including a Breeders’ Stakes race, in 1995, according to officials present, but 2006 will be the first time it holds a race in April.

The commission also unanimously approved the race dates requested by all 10 of Maine’s agricultural fairs: Northern Maine Fair (six race dates), Topsham Fair (six), Skowhegan State Fair (seven), Union Fair (seven), Windsor Fair (nine), Oxford Country Fair (four), Farmington Fair (seven), Cumberland Fair (eight, seven regular and one extended meet date), and Fryeburg Fair (six). The number of dates for each meet remains the same.

The five voting members of the commission are George McHale (chairman), Norman Trask, James Tracy, Anne Jordan and Stanley Kuklinski.