Proponents of proposed Decatur racino make late legislative push

Ronnie Gillespie and his horse Tropical Rosie race to the finish line at the Macon County Fair in 2019. Legislation is pending that would authorize a harness racing track and casino in Decatur.

SPRINGFIELD — With two weeks left in the spring session, proponents of a proposed Decatur horse racing track and casino are making a late push to get the legislation needed to make the project a reality across the finish line. 

But, whether it ultimately happens is no sure bet.

The legislation, sponsored by state Sen. Patrick Joyce, D-Essex, would specifically authorize an organization license for harness racing in Macon County, among other provisions.

The additional license would allow for Virginia-based Revolutionary Racing to develop a more than 200-acre parcel of vacant land at the northwest corner of U.S. 36 and Wyckles Road into a one-mile harness race track that would include a casino with 900 gaming positions. 

Illinois racetracks are permitted to apply for a gaming license that permits on- or near-site slot and table games, facilities known as "racinos," under the massive gaming expansion law Gov. JB Pritzker signed in 2019.

Revolutionary Racing has attained options to purchase the site and is prepared to invest $150 million in the project they are dubbing "Decatur Downs." The company is not requesting any state funds for construction of the track, which could open by the end of 2026 if the legislation is approved. 

The bill also would remove a provision that was included in the 2019 gaming law that allows Hawthorne Race Course in Cook County to veto any proposed project within 35 miles of its existing track in Stickney.

The veto has essentially given Hawthorne exclusive right to develop a new harness racetrack in suburban Chicago, which was authorized under the law. However, their efforts have stalled, leaving the state’s harness racing interests at the figurative gate. 

Joyce’s legislation, introduced in January, has not received a legislative hearing and remains in the gatekeeping Senate Assignments Committee.

But negotiations continue behind the scenes and sources familiar with the discussions expect amended bill language to be filed in the days ahead. 

"We’re in a good spot now," Joyce told Lee Enterprises in an interview. "Timing, timing, timing. I’ve been working on this for going on three years now. I know where the challenges are."

Though there is a desire to help the state’s struggling horse racing industry, any legislation with a gaming component faces intrinsic difficulties as the result of an industry with many different players, all of whom have their own, often diverging interests. 

The bill, at least in its current form, is opposed by the owners of the Golden Nugget Danville and the Par-A-Dice Hotel and Casino in East Peoria. The concern is that a Decatur gaming den could draw customers away.

There could also be opposition from video gaming terminal operators and the bars and restaurants that have come to rely on the slots to pad their bottom lines. As of April, there were 485 video gaming terminals spread across 82 Decatur businesses, making the city one of the top markets for video gaming.

And then there’s Hawthorne, which is seeking to maintain its veto power over any south suburban racino project. 

The 2019 legislation authorizing racinos at existing race tracks was meant to help rejuvenate the industry by bringing in new customers and generating revenue that would be used for higher purses.

Last month, the first racino allowed under the law opened at FanDuel Sportsbook and Horse Racing — previously known as Fairmount Park — in Collinsville. 

Accel Entertainment, which owns the complex, is opposed to the bill in its current form. But that could change with the amendment, which is expected to include language authorizing additional off-track betting facilities and expanding where they can be located, among other sweeteners. 

Proponents of the legislation, including Revolutionary Racing and the Illinois Harness Horsemen’s Association, have been pushing the legislation hard. 

The Decatur project also has the support of a collection of trade unions, including the AFL-CIO, the Decatur Building and Construction Trades Council and the Central Illinois Buildings and Construction Trades Council. A project-labor agreement has already been signed, according to officials.

“Central Illinois needs these jobs," said Illinois AFL-CIO President Tim Drea and Secretary-Treasurer Pat Devaney in a statement. "State and local governments need these tax revenues. The horse racing and equine industries need this investment. And certainly Decatur, which has endured more than its share of economic challenges, needs this project.”

Decatur Mayor Julie Moore Wolfe has also lent her voice, sending Pritzker a letter earlier this month urging him to support legislation enabling the project.

"We would greatly appreciate your support to help Central Illinois register a ‘win’ on economic development. Without it, our equine backers tell us the industry could disappear from our state completely," Moore Wolfe wrote Pritzker in a letter obtained by Herald & Review. 

Pritzker has largely been mum on the project, telling reporters in January that "I understand there’s a desire for (a racino) and we’ll review it." 

Though it’s been said before, many have characterized the legislation as the last gasp for the racing industry in the state.

The state’s horse racing handle slid from $514 million in 2022 to $490 million in 2023, the lowest in 40 years, according to data from the Commission on Government Forecasting and Accountability.

With the closure of Arlington International Racecourse, long the state’s marquee horse racing track, in 2021, Hawthorne and Fairmount are the only two tracks still open in the state. 

Hawthorne features dates for both harness racing and thoroughbreds. The Collinsville track solely features thoroughbreds. The proposed Decatur track would be solely dedicated to standardbreds. 

"It’s a big ag industry that, based on state policy, is struggling," Joyce said. "And I just want to open it up. I’d love to see two standardbred tracks in the state of Illinois, as well as two thoroughbred tracks in state Illinois — a couple of them up north, a couple of them down south."

And with the state expected to face significant budget challenges in the years ahead, Joyce said new tracks could bring in additional revenue to the state. Revolutionary Racing officials estimate that the project could generate as much as $27 million in state and local taxes annually. 

The legislation would also likely authorize additional race days for harness horses in Illinois, including at the state fairgrounds in Springfield.

"That’s what the horsemen need and it’s an industry that brings revenue, it brings jobs, it would be construction of a couple of new tracks," Joyce said.