By Dave Lucas
http://stream.publicbroadcasting.net/production/mp3/wamc/local-wamc-895445.mp3
Saratoga Springs, NY – Although pink slips for 1300 betting parlor workers are already in the mail, the weekend shutdown of New York City's Off-Track Betting Corporation is on hold - Capital District Bureau Chief Dave Lucas has the latest.
Facing a Sunday deadline to shut betting parlors down, New York City's OTB voted to take a one-week "lifeline" that will suspend layoffs and keep parlors open as Gov. David Paterson and legislative leaders continue to negotiate a long-term solution to the agency's' cash-flow problems.
Saratoga County Administrator Dave Wickerham is also a member of Concerned Citizens for Saratoga, a group of business owners, breeders and others with a stake in New York's racing industry. The group gave a presentation to members of the county's racing committee Thursday afternoon. Wickerham's group told the committee that Horse racing in New York is facing challenges on several fronts and state leaders need to take quick, decisive action to save the entire industry.
New York racing is being upstaged by neighboring states: Purse money at New Jersey's Monmouth Park, holding a 50-day meet beginning May 22, is expected to dwarf Saratoga's purses. And New York City's OTB has become an albatross around NYRA's purse, with concerns being raised that NYRA could be out of business in mere weeks, effectively shuttering Saratoga for the 2010 racing season. Wickerham expressed confidence that "something" will happen - he says the state has many reasons keep racing alive. But with legislators reluctant to hand out money to OTB in the face of a 9-Billion dollar budget deficit, New York's Thoroughbred racing industry remains in what can best be described as "turmoil" ...