Monmouth Park talks down to the wire

Oceanport mulls study to look at racetrack operation

BY KENNYWALTER Staff Writer

OCEANPORT — Sen. Jennifer Beck (R- 12th District) said last week that residents would not be left holding the bag if Monmouth Park, the borough’s largest taxpayer, does not operate in 2012.

“I have had personal conversations with the governor about the fact that the [racetrack] property tax payment [$1.8 million] makes up 30 percent of their overall borough revenue,” Beck said. “He knows that, and it is my sense that he is not going to forget that.”

The 2012 season is in doubt after it was announced earlier this month that businessman Morris Bailey walked away from an agreement with the N.J. Sports and Exposition Authority (NJSEA) to take over operation of the racetrack after stakeholders could not come to an agreement.

Tuesday was the deadline for the Legislature to approve the 2012 racing dates.

Beck said the plan is to have the NJSEA continue to operate the track in 2012, and the state will re-bid for a lessee.

However, before the 2012 season can be officially scheduled and the long-term bidding can begin, she said the state needs assurances from the New Jersey Thoroughbred Horsemen’s Association (NJTHA) that broadcasts of races in other parks, which the horsemen control rights to, will continue at the Oceanport track.

“The only reason that Monmouth Park would close is if the horsemen refuse to consent that they will not pull their simulcast signal for the next five years,” Beck said. “The real issue here is that the thoroughbreds control the simulcast signal.

“There is almost no point in rebidding it, because whoever comes in would never be guaranteed that the signal is still there.”

While Beck said on Dec. 16 that she is confident about the park’s future, tensions have been high between Gov. Chris Christie and the horsemen since Bailey backed out of the agreement.

Both parties lobbed blame at each other in various statements and media reports last week.

Beck said the Legislature must approve the racing dates each year but is not directly involved in the lease negotiations.

“Our goal here is trying to push everyone to come to an agreement because there is a lot at stake,” she said. “There is an entire industry that is built around Monmouth Park that [isn’t limited to] Monmouth County.”

At the Dec. 15 meeting, the Oceanport Borough Council passed a resolution authorizing the Planning Board to conduct a preliminary investigation into whether to label Monmouth Park as an area in need of redevelopment.

Oceanport Mayor Michael Mahon explained that the move is the first step for what the administration hopes would allow the borough to take a bigger role in the future of Monmouth Park.

“We have offered to participate in the negotiations and potentially offer a vehicle for transition,” he said. “We’ve volunteered to step in and take a role central to the negoti- ations.

“The borough has to have a mechanism in order to participate and achieve the desired result,” he added. “That is the first step to empower us to create an entity of the governing body that would be designated to participate going forward.”

Borough Attorney John Bennett III said the Planning Board would conduct the investigation, and if the board recommends designating Monmouth Park as a redevelopment zone, the council could create a redevelopment authority.

“Under this scenario, if the redevelopment is determined, that would enable you to get control of the land [and] you’d then have the ability to negotiate with someone to operate the land,” Bennett said. “You would not assume control from the state, the state would have to give you the right to do it.”

Bennett said it would be ideal for the borough to take the lead on the negotiations because Oceanport has the most to lose should any future deal fall through.

“We have a real interest to make it work,” he said. “I think most people on the different sides would recognize that interest would drive us to be fair.”

Beck acknowledged the borough’s major stake in the park’s future.

If the borough wants to be involved in the bidding process for the park, they would be allowed to, she said.

“If Oceanport wants to bid on it when it is re-bid, they can absolutely do that,” she said. “It’s not an option to just reassign this lease to somebody else.”

Mahon said during the meeting that the borough had to do something with the future of the borough’s largest taxpayer in doubt.

“This is a very difficult time for the borough, and I don’t think anyone up here could have foreseen the circumstances that we currently face,” he said.

“Our concern is the risk to our borough and weighing the risk of doing nothing versus the risk of doing something.”

Mahon said the potential job loss if the track were to cease operation is close to 1,600.

In 2010 Christie released a report that called for the privatization of both Monmouth Park and the Meadowlands racetracks.

The report issued a year ago by the governor’s Advisory Commission on Gaming, Sports and Entertainment cited an on-track loss of $6.6 million at Monmouth Park in 2010.

The NJSEA issued a request for proposals for the lease of Monmouth Park on March 31, following Christie’s decision to cease state funding of the horseracing industry.

In April, New York-based real estate developer Bailey entered into negotiations with the state to take over Monmouth Park.

The state also reached an agreement with NewYork real estate developer and investor Jeff Gural for the operation of the Meadowlands racetrack, which runs standardbred races.

According to Beck, the agreement with Gural is still standing, and standardbred racing is set for the 2012 season at the Meadowlands.