Last-minute scramble in New York

Saratoga Springs Mayor Joanne Yepsen (below) must be the optimistic politician alive. She’s not only OK with Saratoga Raceway & Casino taking its expansion plans elsewhere, she actually gave it her blessing, boasting of her city’s “thriving downtown, successful city center, two horse race tracks and a wealth of natural beauty and cultural assets.”

Joanne YepsenWhat Saratoga Raceway owners propose to do is build an offsite casino in East Greenbush, a town that voted favorably in last November’s casino referendum. This would give Saratoga Raceway a satellite facility in the Albany area, just across the Hudson River. To this end, Saratoga investors have bought 72 acres in East Greenbush — chosen from among 15 sites — and are prepared to invest $300 million in a casino. They’ve optioned another 380 acres for a spa and golf course. Praising his “spectacular” new view of Albany, lead investor James Featherstonhaugh said “Our decision there is final: We’re going to bid from East Greenbush … I’m really excited about the location and what we can do there.”

East Greenbush officials are on record as supporting “reasonable” casino development, although what is reasonable remains in the eye of the beholder. The reasonableness of “300-room hotel, nightclub, sports bar, show room and 20,000 square feet of high-end retail space” remains to be seen. A split of the $11.4 million annual payment to the host city and county could make a lot of believers. In the meantime, Saratoga Raceway has to contend with a fast-coalescing Albany bid by David Flaum and a nascent one from Schenectady. Saratoga investors fear that their racino could suffer a 50% loss of business when a rival casino opens in the Capitol Region. By setting up shop in East Greenbush, they could keep it all in the family, so to speak.

There’s still room for more, though. DeLaet’s Landing, in Renssalaer, is unclaimed and Mayor Dan Dwyer describes it as “shovel-ready.” With the deadline for application fees fast approaching, we’ll see who’s serious and who’s blowing smoke.

Vladimir Putin’s plan to put casinos in newly seized Crimea is being called “weird,” among other things. Its purpose is to promote Crimean self-sufficiency, especially since the region is suffering a budget deficit and Russia can’t carry it as a charity case. We’re talking about a despot who cracked down on gambling five years ago and a vast country with only one casino, in remote Azov City. Crimea is hobbled by similar circumstances. Also, as casino expert Andrew Gellatly notes, gaming moguls “are not interested in any place that doesn’t have political stability.” Sheldon Adelson and Steve Wynn will vouch for that.

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