Pari-mutuel betting gets nod from Converse County voters, commissioners

DOUGLAS – Voters narrowly gave their nod of approval for pari-mutuel horse betting in the county last November. Last week, the Converse County commissioners formally did the same when they okayed a resolution allowing 307 Horse Racing, Inc. to open a facility in Douglas.

Touted as a multi-million deal that will preserve as many as 45 jobs and potentially add more, 307 intends to purchase Ranahan Steakhouse on Muirfield Court from the Pollock and Russell families and convert part of it.

The higher-end, popular restaurant will be leased back to Jen and Ed Pollock and Mark and Emily Longmire to operate as Ranahan Steakhouse.

The voter and county approvals were the first steps in pari-mutuel horse racing coming to Converse County, but the company and any others coming here must also receive a Wyoming Gaming Commission license to operate here.

That process, according to 307 officials, can take up to six months.

The county approval was needed under a state statute that vaguely gives the commissioners some oversight but doesn’t clearly define how much it should have.

Thus, the Converse County commissioners struggled at times with the resolution’s wording to give the county some measure of oversight while not hindering 307 from completing the deal and receiving a reasonable return on investment.

One of those debates came over the length of the county approval, which at one part of the draft resolution before them said five years and another said three years.

County Attorney Quentin Richardson recommended making both three years and removing a clause about permit denial being tied to good cause.

307 Vice President Kyle Ridgeway argued the three-year term was too short for the ROI given the multi million investment the company was making in Douglas and the county.

He said five years was more fair as long as the county had standards for denial in the future.

Ridgeway pointed out that the county had the ability to deny the permit for “good cause” under the draft resolution, and 307 was okay with that legally binding wording because it set a standard everyone could understand.

By removing that language, the county could deny the permit based on a whim at the time and put them out of business. Richardson said removing good cause from the resolution would not tie the hands of future commissioners so they could deny the permit for any reason.

"I think we owe it to our people if something goes wrong over there (at Ranahan), don’t expect it,” to be renewed, Richardson said.

Commissioner Jim Willox explained to Ridgeway and 307 President Jack Greer, “County commissioners are reluctant to give things that can never be taken away.”

Yet the commissioners “want to get to a yes” on the permit so they need to find a balance between a permit that can be denied for no reason and one requiring a “gross violation.”

All seemed to agree that the term “good cause” best fit somewhere in the middle.

In the end, the commissioners voted unanimously to set the permit for five years from the date of the resolution (Dec. 20), with renewal terms after that of three years.

“If the commissioners hand intent to deny the renewal, the commissioners shall provide written notice to the permittee and provide an opportunity to be heard at a hearing in front of the commissioners. Any denial shall be supported by specific written findings,” the approved resolution states. “During any term, the commissioners shall have the right to revoke this or any other subsequent resolutions for the permittee only for good cause.”

During the meeting with the commissioners last week, Ridgeway noted the county doesn’t have to have full oversight of the facility and gaming in the county because the state gaming commission already does that.

The gaming commissioner reviews licenses every three years and “has a tone of other regulations” fair beyond anything the county was considering, he said.

“Then if the county wants to regulate it, the standards will need to be well defined,” such as those in place for liquor license permits, he said.

Those permits are a property right because of the investment, and the wagering license should be considered the same.

Willox wouldn’t commit to wagering permits being a property right, which carries certain legal and due process rights under the Fourth Amendment. Nevertheless, he conceded 307 should have a decent ROI for its investment in the county while abiding by state regulations and oversight.

Willox, who just completed his term as chairman of the Wyoming County Commissioners Association (which lobbies on issues of interest to the counties), said he expects changes to the gaming statute in the coming sessions as well, so things could change anyway.

As the commissioners were set to approve the revised resolution authorizing 307 to open at Ranahan Steakhouse location, Ridgeway told them that the deal pending will make this facility the nicest one the company operates in the state.

He reiterated that 307 strives to be the standard for quality in Wyoming for horse betting parlors, and he believes they have achieved that already.

Jen Pollock and Emily Longmire told the commissioners the deal is positive for the restaurant and the community.

“Our staff is over-the-moon excited about this,” Pollock said.

Longmire added that the 45 employees will keep their jobs and are excited about the prospect of increased business in the restaurant and community, two things that are at the top of her agenda. Pollock said the restaurant may see some remodeling to make room for the changes, but the deal is important to allow them to focus on the restaurant operations.