By Bloodhorse.com
CYPRESS, Calif. (July 12, 2018) — While bigger battles could reshape the Northern California racing and wagering landscape, those disagreements will not impact the upcoming Golden Gate Fields meeting.
At its July 12 meeting at Los Alamitos Race Course, the California Horse Racing Board saw enough of an agreement between Golden Gate owner The Stronach Group, off-track betting locations, and the fair tracks to approve the Aug. 22-Oct. 2 race dates for the Northern California track.
The race dates were conditionally approved June 21, but it was uncertain whether those conditions would be met. At that time, as part of being rewarded the dates, the CHRB said The Stronach Group would need to reach simulcast agreements with each Northern California satellite wagering facility as well as a horsemen’s agreement with the Thoroughbred Owners of California by July 2. The Stronach Group balked at those conditions.
At Thursday’s meeting, CHRB staff confirmed those agreements had not been turned in by the deadline.
While that deadline was not met, The Stronach Group’s Scott Daruty said Thursday that the track owner had reached a simulcast agreement with the Sonoma County Fair and had an agreement in principle with the California Association of Racing Fairs, which represents the other fair tracks. CARF executive director Larry Swartzlander agreed with that assessment. Thoroughbred Owners of California CEO Greg Avioli said his group would support the agreements.
With those deals in place, the CHRB voted unanimously to conditionally approve the race dates for the upcoming meet. Those remaining conditions are the seemingly small hurdle of completing the agreement The Stronach Group has in principle with CARF.
Swartzlander noted that while the sides were able to come together for an agreement that works for the upcoming meet, a gulf remains.
“I’ll be very frank, we addressed specific issues that we had with this particular agreement over the summer, but these particular issues are going to resurface again before the fall meet,” Swartzlander said. “The solution we came up with in this agreement is kicking the can down the road again.”
Swartzlander said a critical issue that needs to be addressed is what entities will be responsible for workers at the fair simulcasting outlets during the Golden Gate meet. He said issues on any class-action suits by the union, pension liabilities, operational liabilities, and union negotiations need to be addressed. He said the current agreement addresses the liability issues for the late summer meet, but it’s not a long-term solution.
The Stronach Group opposes the notion race dates should be tied to a simulcast agreement with the fairs. Last month, The Stronach Group CEO Tim Ritvo said if the regulator didn’t approve race dates under the track owner’s desired conditions, it could end racing at Golden Gate Fields.
Also in June, The Stronach Group said it would contest in court the law that requires tracks to reach simulcasting agreements to receive racing dates. At Thursday’s meeting, Daruty said the track owner still plans to contest the rule but said it also had reached an agreement that cleared the standard, as it is currently understood.
“We respectfully believe that California law does not allow the conditions which you imposed on our license. As you are aware, there is pending litigation so we can all get some clarity from a judge,” Daruty said to the CHRB. “In the meantime, we are willing to live by the conditions you imposed because you are our regulator, and until a court says otherwise, that’s something we have to follow. We want to make every effort to run our late summer meet starting in August.”
Daruty also said Thursday that The Stronach Group wants to conduct racing at Golden Gate, where average daily handle was up more than 13% at the last meeting.
Avioli said the deal was a compromise and works for now, but he is concerned that portions of the agreement will make it difficult to reach labor deals going forward.
“This is basically the best deal that could be cut,” Avioli said. “We are disappointed, though, as a part of this deal is The Stronach Group is going to negotiate on its own going forward into labor in the North and South. … It just throws another wrench in already complex negotiations, but we’re going to do our best, and we do support the deal as the best alternative in the midst of a bunch of not-great alternatives.”
Dana Stoehr of the San Mateo Jockey Club said any move away from simulcast outlets is premature. She presented a petition in support of the simulcast outlet near San Francisco with more than 400 signatures. CHRB executive director Rick Baedeker said the San Mateo Jockey Club handles the third-most money of any fairgrounds simulcast outlet in the state and the most in Northern California.
“I ask you to consider the most important issue, the faithful patrons that not only come to San Mateo but the hundreds more who visit off-track betting facilities throughout Northern California,” Stoehr said. “The tactics that The Stronach Group has used, in such an untimely manner, is simply a detriment to the industry, the patrons, the employees, and the dedicated Thoroughbred owners who race in California.”
She called on the board to require strategic planning from the fairs and the tracks to create long-term stability and viability to avoid last-minute decisions.
In approving the agreement that will keep the late summer meet on schedule at Golden Gate, CHRB chairman Chuck Winner said he understands there still are some important, long-term issues that need to be addressed.
“I recognize that this is not a perfect solution. Whenever there are disagreements, you’re never going to get a perfect solution that’s going to satisfy everybody—it’s never going to happen,” Winner said. “As to the whole labor issue, that’s not something under our jurisdiction … with respect to kicking the can down the road, the objective here was to try to make sure that this summer meet is going to be run.”
With the compromise in place, the CHRB scratched the final item on its agenda: discussion and action on reallocating the Northern California race dates.