Although the New Hampshire House recently rejected a casino bill that many gaming supporters in the Granite State, especially Rockingham Park racetrack in Salem, had pinned their hopes on, the issue isn’t completely dead, according to some political observers.
The House vote was 173-144, but a change of 15 votes would have meant an entirely different result. And the optimists among gaming supporters note that the Senate, which has always been a reliable supporter of gaming, has another bill wending its way through the process.
On the other hand, only two months remains in the state’s legislative calendar. Beyond that, some supporters of the racetrack feel that it can survive a few more years with some assistance.
Senator Lou D’Allesandro, who has been a stalwart advocate of gaming expansion, and of Rockingham Park and its 170 acres, said last week, “The future for Rockingham Park is not a bright future without casino gaming. I see the end of Rockingham Park. I see them carving the land up and selling it off.”
The Board of Selectmen of Salem has previously voted to support a racino there, and so did 80 percent of the residents of the town. Millennium Gaming Inc. out of Las Vegas has committed to spend $600 million in developing the site, including a hotel. That has not changed, despite the House vote, said Millennium spokesman Rich Killion last week. “We’re focused on now,” he said.
Rockingham Park faces increased competition from the three casino resorts and one slots parlor that neighboring Massachusetts is currently licensing. That threatens the park’s $2 million in charity gaming that it hosts. Charity gaming will almost certainly be a casualty says Rockingham president Ed Callahan.
While Senator D’Allesandro is not optimistic at this point, he remains committed to trying. “To be realistic, given the disposition of the House, where about 80 people are not showing up on a session-to-session basis, this thing doesn’t have much of a shot,” he told the Eagle Tribune.
However since the House vote some representatives have said they have changed their minds, and the cause has picked up some opponents who switched their votes from last year.
