NEWS
NYRA to continue operating through January 23
Posted: Friday, December 28, 2007 9:15 AM
by Paul Post
An agreement reached Thursday will keep New York’s racetracks operating through
January 23 while state lawmakers keep working on a final franchise agreement.
New York Racing Association’s current franchise to operate
Aqueduct, Belmont
Park, and Saratoga Race
Course expires December 31.
There was great concern throughout the Thoroughbred industry
that New York
racing could shutter on Tuesday. The extension agreed to Thursday will prevent
that.
“At least until January 23,” said Steven Newman, the
Oversight Board’s new chairman. Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver (D-Manhattan)
named him to the panel last week and immediately after, Governor Eliot Spitzer
made him the group’s chairman. “The intent [is] to provide more time for
negotiations.”
The governor and both branches of the legislature must all
agree on the final agreement, but lawmakers are not due back in Albany until early
January.
Staff for all three branches of state government worked
feverishly on Thursday to resolve the franchise question. Spitzer has proposed
keeping NYRA in place for 30 more years in exchange for NYRA dropping its claim
to the racetrack land and forgiveness of debt.
Senate Majority Leader Joseph L. Bruno (R-Saratoga Springs)
wants the contract to be much shorter with mandatory periodic reviews to ensure
greater accountability.
The bitter state rivals have disagreed on a number of key
points such as who should conduct simulcasting, the makeup of NYRA’s board, and
gaming at the two downstate tracks. Bruno wants gaming at both Aqueduct and Belmont, but current
legislation allows for an Aqueduct racino only.
Such differences have kept leaders apart, casting a pall over
the entire industry because of threats about a possible racing shutdown.
State law called for the five-member Oversight Board to run
racing if a franchise agreement was not reached by December 31, but NYRA had
said it would not let the state conduct racing on land it claims to own.
On another front, NYRA’s bankruptcy confirmation hearing,
originally scheduled for Thursday, has been delayed until January 14. NYRA’s
reorganization plan is based on the September 4 memorandum of understanding it
signed with Spitzer.
Bruno, however, has objected to several important points. For
now, it is unclear what the final agreement will look like. The courts probably
would not rule on NYRA’s reorganization until state leaders finish work on the
franchise.
“We’re waiting for Albany
to catch up to us,” said Brian Rosen, NYRA’s attorney.
