Travis Boersma, who brought racing back to Oregon at Grants Pass after the closure of the state’s main racetrack, Portland Meadows, has plans to install 250 historical horse racing terminals in an adjoining restaurant and entertainment center at the Josephine County Fairgrounds in the southern Oregon town of about 35,000.
Boersma’s plans were detailed in a recent article covering the state’s gambling industry in the Oregonian’s website, www.oregonelive.com.
The entertainment center, currently under construction, is named The Flying Lark in honor of one of the state’s most famous Thoroughbred who raced in the late 1960s. Grants Pass announced plans for the entertainment center last year but did not indicate it would include historical horse racing.
A spokesperson for Oregon Gov. Kate Brown told oregonlive.com the governor will defer to the Oregon Racing Commission to determine whether or not the machines fit the definition of pari-mutuel wagering and, thus, are legal. Native American tribes, whose gaming revenue has flatelined over the last decade as the state lottery has grown, is opposed to the installation of HHR machines as are problem gambling organizations.
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