The deadline to sign on to a new governance structure for horse racing across Ontario is Monday, but there are still concerns about what's on offer for the local industry.
Ontario Harness Horse Association General Manager Brian Tropea said Leamington Raceway is being offered nothing, so it has decided not to sign onboard.
"Basically if a race track like Lakeshore [Horse Racing Association] signed up to it, it gives them two years security which they already have," said Tropea, pointing to a contract in place that awards the Leamington Raceway transfer payments. "So, one of the things that we'd like to see is, if a race track like Leamington signs up to that long-term funding deal that it, in fact, gives them long-term funding for the term of the agreement, which is a 19-year deal."
The new governance structure is called Ontario Racing, and at the end of Leamington Raceway's contract in two years, it would decide whether to fund it into the future.
Tropea admitted the ongoing fight to ensure the long-term survival of the track in Leamington is taking a toll on those in the local horse racing industry.
"I would say they're starting to feel a little bit beat down now," he said. "They lost their track in 2012, and they have to ship a long way to race. With 15 race days, it's a hobby. They basically took an industry that made a huge economic impact to rural Ontario, and devastated it."
Tropea was referring to the loss of Windsor Raceway and the loss of the slot machines there. Other tracks have kept their slot machines. Others that have not, are getting funding to make up for it, but not Leamington Raceway.
Leamington Raceway also will not benefit from a recent provincial announcement of $10 million a year.
"The government needs to decide whether it wants a strong horse racing industry in this province or not," continued Tropea. "If they do, then the Windsor area has to be a part of that. It's the second biggest betting area in the province, historically has always been."
- With files from Paul Pedro.