Boston Race Track Files Casino Application

  A venerable horse racing  track in Boston, Suffolk Downs, has become the first  potential casino developer in Massachusetts to formally apply for a license.  WAMC’s  Paul Tuthill reports.

   Suffolk downs submitted a $400,000 non refundable application fee to the Massachusetts Gaming Commission, just a day after the formal licensing process began. The owners of the 77 year old race track plan to partner with Caesar’s Entertaintment to  bid for the one casino license available in eastern Massachusetts..A  spokesperson for Ameristar, which has bought land in Springfield for a casino development, said the Nevada based company intends to  become an official applicant, but saw no advantage to paying the $400,000 immediately.   The commission said this first step in the licensing process is intended to identify  serious developers and allow them to contact state agencies and municipal departments to assist in planning their projects.