Serving the High Plains
Serving the High Plains
The New Mexico Racing Commission, citing the declining health of the state’s horse-racing industry, on Thursday unanimously denied a license application from Coronado Partners to build a racetrack and casino on Tucumcari’s east side.
The commissioners’ 4-0 action followed a closed executive session of about an hour to discuss the application for the sixth and final license in New Mexico. The commission faced a court-mandated Nov. 2 deadline to decide on Coronado’s application.
Commission Chairman Sam Bregman said after reviewing Coronado Partners’ application and documents associated with it, he was inclined to reject it.
“At this time, I don’t believe it is in the public interest or health of the industry to grant this license,” Bregman said.
Bregman said New Mexico’s horse racing industry had seen a continuing decline in the number of racehorses and races since the commission first rejected Coronado’s application in 2018.
“I don’t believe the industry is healthy enough to support a sixth license,” he said. “The industry has only gotten tougher.”
John Buffington, the only other commissioner to speak on the matter, also said it wasn’t in the best interest to grant the license.
Before the decision, commission general counsel Richard Bustamonte listed items that commissioners had reviewed associated with the application.
Coronado Partners principal Warren Frost, an attorney from Logan, objected to that, saying it appeared the commission had not reviewed the updated application and its new material.
Frost could not reached immediately for comment. In previous comments to the Quay County Sun, he said if the commission rejected the application, he would appeal the decision back to the district judge that compelled the commission to act.
“If she finds that the Commission’s reasons for denying the license are invalid, she can order them to issue us a license,” Frost wrote in an email this summer.
Albuquerque District Court Judge Nancy Franchini in June ordered the racing commission to act within 90 days on whether to accept or reject Coronado Partners’ license request. Both sides later agreed to a 90-day extension to comply with the order.
Franchini in her order affirmed Frost’s request for a writ of mandamus against the commission. A writ of mandamus asks a court to compel another entity to perform its official duties, including making decisions on license applications.
Coronado Partners has sought such a license for years.
Franchini rejected arguments from commission director Ismael “Izzy” Trejo during a court hearing where he claimed the commission could not award the sixth license because of a variety of issues, including the fragility of the thoroughbred and racing industries in New Mexico.
Coronado Partners said its horse-racing track and casino on Tucumcari would have employed at least 500 people and generated up to $55 million in revenue by 2025.