IRB grants permission for Hawthorne to drop four Thursday harness programs in February

Chicago, IL — The Illinois Racing Board at its January meeting approved a request from Hawthorne Race Course to shutter one of its off-track wagering outlets and take over operations of another that had been operated by Arlington Park. The IRB also granted permission for Hawthorne, operating as Suburban Downs, to drop four Thursday harness programs in February.

Hawthorne already had received approval to absorb several other OTBs that had been operated by Arlington. The IRB in December denied a request by Arlington, which ended live racing in 2021 and was sold for development, for a 2022 license to continue operating a handful of OTBs.

The Jan. 20 request was to take over the Villa Park outlet in the Chicago suburbs and close the OTB in Ottawa in the central part of the state.

John Walsh, assistant general manager at Hawthorne, told the IRB the handle at the Ottawa outlet was dropping and the facility most likely would close. He said employees there will be moved to other nearby locations, and employees who worked for Arlington at Villa Park would be rehired.

Based on the latest available IRB annual report, in 2020 the Villa Park outlet handled $7.7 million for an average of $21,231 per day. The Ottawa facility that year handled $792,000 for an average of about $2,100 per day. Villa Park is among the top 10 OTBs in the state for total handle.

Hawthorne officials last year told the IRB they would pursue legislation that would allow the track to operate additional OTB facilities. A bill that would amend the Illinois Horse Racing Act of 1975 by striking the cap of 16 for Hawthorne and also loosen geographical limits for OTBs is making its way through the current General Assembly session.

The more than 20 Illinois OTBs in 2020 generated $133.5 million in handle for a daily average of $409,000, according to the IRB annual report.

As for the Hawthorne racing dates, Walsh said the decision to drop live racing on Feb. 3, 10, 17 and 24 is due to a shortage of horses that is making it difficult to fill four programs per week as originally planned. A decision has not yet been made on any changes to the March schedule, which calls for racing Thursdays through Sundays, Walsh said.

“We’re hoping we can do four (programs) a week in March,” he said.

The day after the IRB meeting, the Illinois Thoroughbred Horsemen’s Association reported that horsemen’s lobbying efforts resulted in a $5.9 million transfer from the state budget to purse accounts at Illinois racetracks. Hawthorne’s share amounted to $1.77 million for its Standardbred purse account and $2.68 million for its Thoroughbred purse account.

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