The Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation is seeking an operator for Ajax Downs and Woodbine Racetrack. It first requested requests for pre-qualification (RFPQ) more than a year ago. The deadline was to be March 14 of this year, but has been extended until May 8.
OLG has divided the province into gaming zones, which will each have one casino.
Once potential operators are pre-qualified, they will be asked to submit a proposal for anywhere within the gaming zone.
According to Rod Phillips, president and CEO of OLG, who commented at the time, “Not only does there need to be demonstrated customer interest and a compelling business case that results in increased revenue for the Government of Ontario, there also needs to be a willing municipal host. And where there is a slots-at-racetrack facility, a proposal has to make sense for the horseracing industry. Any new site or relocation of an existing site is subject to final approval from the Ontario government.”
However, Phillips won’t be staying around to see who wins the license, since he resigned in January, and an interim CEO, Tom Marinelli, has been chosen until a permanent CEO can be found.
One developer who MAY propose a development for Pickering that would include casino and thus might be in the running for running the Ajax racetrack.
That developer is Pickering Developments Inc., which has applied for a rezoning permit for Durham Live, for a tourism zoning, which might include a casino. Pickering is owned by the Apostolopoulos family, which is one of Canada’s richest families.
According to Steve Apostolopoulos, a founder of Pickering Developments, “Pickering is a fast-growing, thriving community … that lacked a major entertainment or hospitality area.”
This proposal raises questions of what the future of Ajax Downs might be, since they are in the same gaming zone. Ajax Mayor Steve Parish said last week that he is not concerned because the racetrack is extremely successful and anyone wanting to move it would have to make a strong case with the OLG that it has a good business reason.
