No Consensus (Yet)
The NEHBPA board met on Sunday to discuss the latest offer from Suffolk Downs for the 2011 meet, but a consensus on the terms could not be reached, reports Lynne Snierson:
“There was a lot of talk but there is no agreement yet,†said one board member who asked not to be identified. “Our discussions were mostly about clarification, of both exactly what Suffolk is offering and of what we want and what we can accept. There is no consensus among us at this time, but one may be within reach.â€
Details of the proposal have not been confirmed. Both sides may have moved toward a compromise on purses and days, with Suffolk reportedly upping its offer for total purses to $8.4 million* from $7.5 million and the horsemen giving way on the 100-day meet minimum the group has sought. Snierson indicates that the simulcasting revenue split, which the horsemen have argued should be 50-50, may also still be in contention. The board will meet again tonight to discuss the proposal; updates here as available.
*The total of the new offer from Suffolk is in line with the counter-offer made by the NEHBPA to the track on February 10, which proposed purses based on available revenue and 100 days. A source confirms the track is proposing average daily purses of $103,000 to $110,000 for 75-85 days of racing.
1:15 PM Addendum: More from Snierson:
Suffolk Downs has threatened to shut down in March if the New England Horsemen’s Benevolent and Protective Association and other chapters across the country do not restore simulcast signals by Feb. 26, according to a source close to the negotiations in the ongoing dispute …
A racetrack source said there was no deadline for the offer, but indicated that it was important for the blocked simulcasting signals to be restored quickly or purses and days on offer for the meet were in danger of being cut due to lost revenue. During the weekend of February 12-13, the first full weekend Suffolk was unable to simulcast such tracks as Aqueduct and Gulfstream, handle was down approximately 50% over the equivalent weekend the year before.
Saturday Notes
The Suffolk Downs-NEHBPA dispute has made Paul Daley pessimistic:
Sadly, within the next month, live thoroughbred racing in New England may become the stuff of history books.
Despite the resumption of negotiations on Thursday with the NEHBPA, six simulcasting signals are still blocked at Suffolk Downs. For the second consecutive Saturday, Massachusetts bettors will take their money elsewhere: “My good friend, suffolkdownslova, has to drive all the way to Raynham-Taunton Greyhound Park to place the bets he so lovingly needs.”
Monmouth’s experiment has been mentioned as a model for Suffolk’s future, but a more instructive success might be Tampa Bay Downs, where many Massachusetts horsemen winter. Ed DeRosa highlights just one example of what the track has done well — the reduced takeout Pick 4, up 31%.
Orlando Bocachica, Suffolk’s leading rider in 2009, is hot at Gulfstream.
2/20/11 Suffolk Dispute Update: The track has presented the NEHBPA with a new offer for the 2011 meet. More information will be available on Monday.
Horsemen, Suffolk Talk
The NEHBPA and Suffolk Downs resumed negotiations this afternoon, one week after the horsemen offered the track a proposal for the 2011 meet, and almost four weeks after talks over purses, days, and the simulcasting revenue split initially broke down. No details of the discussion were divulged. Frank Frisoli, the horsemen’s lawyer, sent the following statement:
The NEHBPA conferenced with representatives of Suffolk Downs this afternoon. It anticipates receiving a proposal in the very near future from Suffolk Downs which will be presented to the Board of Directors of the NEHBPA.
The NEHBPA will have no further comments on this matter pending receipt of a proposal.
Track officials have not yet commented.
Hopefully, that the horsemen expect a proposal soon from Suffolk is a sign some progress was made today in finding a resolution to the bitter dispute.
2/18/11 Addendum: Lynne Snierson reports on the Thursday conversation:
“We had a good dialogue today and some of it is encouraging,†said Chip Tuttle, chief executive officer of the East Boston, Mass., track. “There are some places where we still have additional work to do to reach a consensus. We will keep the process moving forward.â€
In light of the past few weeks, that’s a promising statement.
9:00 PM Update: “Constructive” talks continued on Friday …
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Jessica Chapel writes and edits in Massachusetts. Railbird is a Thoroughbred horse racing blog published from June 2004 to July 2019. More / Contact
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