Court OKs procedures for auction of racino

Special to The Vindicator

NEW CASTLE, Pa.

A U.S. bankruptcy court in Delaware has agreed to procedures for auctioning the proposed $425 million Valley View Downs racetrack/casino project on property off U.S. Route 422 in Mahoning Township.

Susan Kilkenny a spokeswoman for Indianapolis-based Centaur LLC, the parent company of Valley View Downs, said she expects a court order to this effect early next week. She said auction dates and additional information will be released at that time.

Unconfirmed reports indicated that the court will set an early October deadline for bids and select a bid in late October.

Some say the possibility that a new owner may acquire Valley View Downs from Centaur is the best news in some time for the project, which has been stalled for two years. While waiting for approval for a casino license, the project lost its initial lenders and has been unable to secure new financing. Valley View Downs filed for bankruptcy protection in October 2009, followed by Centaur in March 2010.

In related news, the Pennsylvania Harness Racing Commission has set a special meeting for 10 a.m. next Friday to decide whether it will grant a two-year extension of Valley View Downs’ harness-racing license, which first was awarded in 2007. The extension of the current license, which expires Sept. 5, is necessary for the horse-racing and casino project to stay alive. The harness-racing license awarded to Valley View Downs was the fourth and final of the Pennsylvania licenses which by law must be combined with a casino. Officials have said the license would transfer to a new owner.