Wednesday, June 2, 2010

And they're off! (again)

From Crains:

A half-dozen entities have thrown their hats into the latest round of bidding to become the developer and operator of the Aqueduct racino. This time around two new players—one from overseas—have emerged.

Empire City Casino-Yonkers Raceway and Genting New York LLC, a Malaysian investment firm that operates casinos overseas, submitted the $1 million refundable entry fee, according to New York Lottery Division. In another surprise, Toronto-based Clairvest Group, which was a partner in Aqueduct Entertainment Group, also submitted a bid.

Earlier this year AEG, the previous winner of the Aqueduct video slot machine contract, was denied a gaming license and the state withdrew its support for the group. There is an ongoing investigation by the state's inspector general into the previous selection of AEG. It was unclear who Clairvest's partners are in the latest bid.

As anticipated, previous losing bidders in the earlier round—Manhattan's largest commercial landlord SL Green, Penn National Gaming, and Delaware North & Saratoga Gaming and Raceway—rounded out the other parties that submitted the entry fee by the June 1 deadline.

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