Sudbury City Council will not decide whether a gaming expansion should be located at Sudbury Downs exclusively until council gets more information from the OLG, ORC and the track itself.

News of council’s position on the matter comes courtesy of a report in the Sudbury Star.

During a council meeting on Tuesday (May 13), Councillor Claude Berthiaume introduced a Notice of Motion, which calls for local casino gaming to only be conducted at Sudbury Downs. Council opted to hold off on taking a position on the matter until the three parties provide more information on the situation.

“I was hoping we'd pass this motion and we’d put Sudbury Downs as the area to have the casino,” the Sudbury Star quoted Berthiaume as saying after the meeting.

“I don't think we can split the harness racing and the casino. It has to be together in order for Sudbury Downs to survive. Of course, the industry's already there. People are already working there, at the slots, right now. We have harness racing. To save their jobs, that's why I was hoping we would pass this motion tonight. But now we'll see what happens.”

Standardbred racing participants in the Sudbury area are growing more impatient with the uncertainty of the 2014 season of live racing at Sudbury Downs. Track officials applied for a May 24 start date at the track, and with that date looming and no deal in place, local horsepeople are beginning to speak out.

(With files from the Sudbury Star)

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