Churchill Downs seeks short-term winter racing license

Churchill Downs Incorporated (CDI) is requesting to host a 2020 winter Thoroughbred racing meet at its prestigious venue in Louisville, Kentucky.

The application comes as the the company constructs the New Latonia Racing & Gaming development, which is costing up to $200m and will offer live and historical racing and year-round training facilities in northern Kentucky and host Thoroughbred racing in future years.

The application requests that NKYRG LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of CDI, be granted with a racing license to conduct live Thoroughbred racing in January through March and in December 2020.

The track emphasises that being issued these meetings is a vitally important short-term measure to support the Thoroughbred racing circuit in Kentucky.

It expects that awarding these 2020 race dates to NKYRG will lead to significantly increased purses and parimutuel handle, resulting in increased tax revenues to the Kentucky General Fund, Thoroughbred Development Fund, the Equine Industry Program, Equine Drug Research and the Higher Education Fund.

If approved by the KHRC, upon completion of the new racing facility, these race dates would permanently move to the proposed New Latonia facility.

Kevin Flanery, President of CDRT stated: “Churchill Downs is stepping up to protect and grow Kentucky’s Thoroughbred racing circuit. Our willingness to make a sizeable investment in the neglected northern Kentucky market is our latest effort to improve Kentucky’s valuable horse racing and agriculture industries.”

The initial step of the integration for the New Latonia facility represents a economic development of up to $150m for northern Kentucky, with it estimated that anticipated that almost 400 direct full and part time equivalent positions and an estimated 800 direct construction jobs.

Flanery added: “Just as Derby City Gaming’s historical racing machines have supercharged purses at Churchill Downs Racetrack, we plan to do the same for northern Kentucky’s racing fans at New Latonia.

“Our goal is to deliver an ultra-competitive racing product with more entries and high-quality horses that appeal to bettors and horseplayers nationwide.”

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