And then there were two: Applicant drops bid for historic horse racing in Wichita area
Next week, the Kansas Racing and Gaming Commission will choose where a 1,000-machine historic horse racing facility will be built in Sedgwick County.
But one applicant, Flint Hills Entertainment, has withdrawn its bid to construct such an attraction in Towne West Square, KRGC Government Relations Manager Randy Evans confirmed to The Eagle.
“This was strictly voluntary on their part. Their application was accepted by the KRGC, and they chose to withdraw about 30 days or so ago,” Evans said of Flint Hill Entertainment, whose application also included plans for a horse racing track in Eureka.
Paul Treadwell — the man behind Flint Hills Entertainment, according to secretary of state records, and owner of Dandales Western Store in Wichita — could not be reached for comment.
The two remaining bids to build a venue where people can bet on previously run horse races under Kansas’ 2022 sports betting law are from Wichita developer George Laham and real estate magnate Phil Ruffin.
Ruffin wants to build a facility in the 72-acre Wichita Greyhound Park that he purchased from Sedgwick County in 2018. Wichita GC Charities Inc. is listed on the application along with Ruffin Holdings Inc.
Laham, in conjunction with Boyd Gaming Inc. and Supporting Kansas Veterans Inc., wants to construct a venue called the Diamond Jo casino just south of Hartman Arena in Park City that would also feature a steakhouse, a bar and a convention space.
Details of both bids have not been made public. A representative for the Boyd Gaming proposal did not respond to repeated calls and a Ruffin Holdings representative declined to share more information before next week’s selection.
Picking a winner
Historical horse racing machines resemble slot machines and allow bettors to select horses based on their track record. Bettors don’t get to know the name of the horse or jockey or the date or track where the race was run.
After bettors make their selection, a screen on the machine will display a video clip of the last few seconds of the race.
State law allows for only 1,000 such machines in Sedgwick County, meaning the commission must pick one proposal.
The three-day selection process is open to the public and will start at 9 a.m. Tuesday inside Wichita’s Drury Plaza Hotel Broadview on West Douglas.
Day one will feature presentations from both applicants, questions from commissioners and a financial review.
Evans said copies of the presentations will not be posted online ahead of the public comment portion of the meeting, which is scheduled for 1:45 to 5 p.m. Wednesday, after feedback from local government and business representatives.
“We are hoping with the prior advance notice of these hearings taking place that interested parties can attend,” Evans said.
Written comments can also be sent to Randy.Evans@ks.gov for commissioners to review ahead of the final selection, which is tentatively scheduled for 4:15 p.m. Thursday.
