Oka Valley Standardbreds' Michael Perzow, president of Association Hippiques des Reproducteurs du Quebec, spoke with Trot Insider this morning regarding the most recent updates in the Quebec horse racing industry, which have been significant
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Perzow, who is also a member of Société des propriétaires et éleveurs de chevaux Standardbred du Québec (SPECSQ) and Association Trot et Amble du Québec (ATAQ), said that the Quebec government has offered a proposal to aid Attractions Hippiques, the Quebec racetrack operator which is currently under creditor protection.
Perzow told Trot Insider that the deal includes the government giving Attractions Hippiques 100 additional video lottery terminals to Hippodrome de Montreal. Attractions Hippiques would own those machines, therefore allowing the company to bank all of the profits the machines produce. There are currently 200 VLTs at Hippodrome de Montreal, with those proceeds split amongst the Quebec government, Attractions Hippiques and the provincial horsemen, a similar deal that has allowed the Ontario industry to flourish.
According to Perzow, even though Attractions Hippiques would inexplicably just receive the additional 100 machines, the deal would allow Attractions Hippiques to bulldoze the Hippodrome de Montreal racetrack, therefore offering only simulcasting in the future, yet retaining the 300 machines. In turn, Attractions Hippiques would be given the 'okay' from provincial government to operate a mini-casino, which, seemingly, would not help the province's horsepeople whatsoever.
Perzow told Trot Insider that the proposed deal from the Quebec government is for Attractions Hippiques to offer only $12 million in purses for the 2009 racing season, although the contract Attractions Hippiques signed in 2006 makes them obliged, by law, to offer at least $16.7 million for the '09 season. Perzow also explained that an additional $8 million in purses is owed to provincial horsemen from the recently-concluded 2008 racing season, therefore the total amount of purses Attractions Hippiques should be offering horsemen in 2009 should be in the range of $24.7 million.
Meetings on the proposal are scheduled for Groundhog Day, Monday, February 2, in court in Montreal. Perzow said that any type of deal resembling the one that is being thrown around will be strongly opposed, to put things lightly.
"Massicotte and Attractions Hippiques have not lived up to even one of the conditions they were obliged to under the present agreement," Perzow told Trot Insider, "why we would we, as provincial horsemen, think they would live up to any other conditions going forward? Why should anybody?"
Perzow and the province's horsemen's groups are in well-documented dire times, a situation which has not been overblown whatsoever. Many horsepeople in Quebec are pushing to obtain the equity in a possible sale of the Hippodrome de Montreal property. Perzow told Trot Insider that if a sale happened, he would want the equity to be given to the provincial horsemen to build a racetrack alongside the river. Perzow said that the 2006 deal which saw Attractions Hippiques gain operating control of Quebec's racetracks did not give them ownership of the Hippodrome de Montreal property. He said that if the equity was given to the horsemen, a functioning racetrack could be erected alongside the river in 18 months time.
"Horsemen will not, in any way, shape or form, accept the proposed deal, and we are against any deal involving Attractions Hippiques," Perzow said. "We want guaranteed purses from the government. After what has gone on with this whole ordeal, can anyone blame us?"
To read mainstream media articles and reactions to the proposals from the Quebec government, click the links below.
cyberpresse.ca article by André Noël
• French
• English
cyberpresse.ca article by Karim Benessaieh
• French
• English
argent.canoe.com article
• French
• English
Canadian Press article
• French
• English
radio-canada.ca article
• French
Ils veulent faire comme en
Ils veulent faire comme en Ontario...pleins de machines sur les tracks......YOUHOOOOOOOO, y'a tu quelqu'un qui va allumé qu'il y JUSTE des machines sur les tracks de courses en Ontario !!!! C'est pour ça que ça marche ce système, au Québec il y des machines PARTOUT, personne va faire 20-25 miles en char pour jouer dans les machines au Québec, il y en a tous les coins de rue...L'expérience de l'inutile et du très dipendieux Ludoplex de 3 riv, ya personne qui s'en rappel ???????
As usual, we help the ones
As usual, we help the ones who already have the ressources to live and let down the ones who struggle to survive. For your information, yes I am an employee of AH but do not accept this kind of unrighteous proposal. In this moment of crysis, we need to maintain jobs and create new ones. This proposal is obviously done by a bunch of "noobs" that have no idea what the Horseracing Industry in Quebec consists of.
Creating a mini-casino will not bring more people. For people using public transportation, I don't think many will love walking in our nice snowy winter days 10 minutes just to get to the Hippodrome (or whatever they're going to call it). The Casino of Montreal has a bus line JUST for bringing people from the Metro (Subway) to the Casino only about 10 minutes wait between passes. The 92 bus line that longs Jean-Talon goes from the Hippodrome to the Metro Jean-Talon and has about a 30 mins wait between passes.
How many jobs will this project create? 10 to 20... ok let's say around 30. But think about it... creating 30 jobs so the other 3000 starve?... Don't you think there's something with that? I'll let you think about it.
Last point, the "profit" in all this... As it is now, I rarely see the VLT place full. Adding the 100 machines will bring what? I'll let you think about it too.
I must apologize to our government. As long you don't study the field, you cannot propose anything. I respect you politicians who worked hard to get to where you are now but I think we all know that we cannot excel in everything. "As long there is life, there is learning to do."