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Friday, July 25, 2008

Chalmers Pitches Racino Plan

By Charles D. Brunt
Journal Staff Writer
       TUCUMCARI — A racetrack and casino in Tucumcari would produce more jobs, betting and revenue for the state than either of the other two locations being considered for the state's sixth — and, for the next 29 years, its final — racino, proponents said Thursday.
    "I'm serious about economic development because I know what that does for the citizens of our state and for communities like Tucumcari," Albuquerque-based car dealer Don Chalmers told the state Racing Commission and a standing-room-only crowd of about 1,200 people at the Tucumcari Convention Center.
    Chalmers heads Coronado Partners, a group of investors seeking a racing license to open a racino in Tucumcari.
    The state, which has five non-reservation racinos, renegotiated its compacts with casino-operating tribes last year, agreeing to extend the compacts through the year 2037 and to cap the number of racinos in the state at six until the compacts expire.
    The Racing Commission has already heard from the two other groups that have applied for a license to open the sixth racino. Pojoaque Pueblo, which has owned the shuttered Downs at Santa Fe since 1996, presented its case for reopening that track as a racino Tuesday in Pojoaque. A group called Horse Racing at Raton touted its racino plan to the commission July 10 in Raton.
    Racing Commission Chairman Arnold Rael said Thursday the commission expects to make a decision on who gets the sixth racino sometime in August.
    Chalmers' group hopes to build the racino on 245 acres adjacent to Interstate 40 on Tucumcari Boulevard. The 550,000-square-foot facility would include a casino with 600 slot machines.
    Noting that Tucumcari has shown a steadily declining population and economy, Chalmers said, "This community doesn't deserve that. If you see the support and spirit of this community, they deserve better than that. We believe Coronado Park is just what they need to bring this community back and be thriving again."
    Citing a comparative economic impact study conducted for his group, Chalmers said a Tucumcari racino would generate $114.7 million in gross receipts. Similarly, he said, the racing handle — the amount bet by customers — in 2010 would be $9.8 million. He noted that another study found that total employment gains with a Tucumcari track would be 1,128 jobs.
    Following an hourlong presentation that covered everything from jobs to manure disposal, Chalmers' team was endorsed by nearly 20 local politicians, education officials, economic development entities and dozens of citizens.
    Among them was Tucumcari City Manager John Sutherland, who told the commission, "The smartest business decision you can make in selecting the site for the final license available for the next 29 years, is the city of Tucumcari."