Minnesota bill looks to racetrack slots to raise potential Vikings stadium cash

Bill looks Racetrack slots, maybe for stadium cash

ST. PAUL, Minn. — Supporters of a perennial proposal to put slots and video gambling in racetracks are promising something for everyone this year, from preschoolers to cutting-edge medical researchers, horse breeders and maybe the Minnesota Vikings.

The latest version of the racino legislation was unveiled Tuesday as the “Jobs, Family and Economic Development Fund.”

Backers said expanded racetrack gambling would raise an estimated $125 million each year for rural development, bioscience projects, early childhood education and the overdrawn state checking account. Another slice would be go to sports facilities, possibly including a new home for the Vikings. The team’s Metrodome lease expires after the 2011 season.

Rep. Al Juhnke, the bill’s House sponsor, said the games would invigorate Minnesota’s horse industry by drawing new business to Shakopee’s Canterbury Park and Running Aces in Columbus. He said the racino money could cover some but probably not all the debt service for a stadium.

“In this economic climate, we have very few options, and this is a real option for a piece of the puzzle,” said Juhnke, a Democrat from Willmar.

Legislation to allow slot machines at Canterbury Park has been circulating at the Capitol for 13 years. It’s a tough sell, with opposition coming from casino-owning tribes who spend and lobby heavily to defend their business to those who dislike gambling on ethical grounds.

“This market is fairly saturated. All they’re doing is just moving money around,” said John McCarthy, executive director of the Minnesota Indian Gaming Association.

McCarthy said expanded racetrack gambling would cost jobs at tribal casinos in Prior Lake and north of the Twin Cities, from Hinckley and Mille Lacs to Carlton and Duluth. He said his organization also fears that the legislation would lead to startup racetracks around the state featuring mainly video gambling.

Former state Sen. Dick Day, a Republican who resigned earlier this year to lobby for the racino bill, was willing to stake his reputation on eventually winning GOP Gov. Tim Pawlenty’s support. Pawlenty has said no to the racino idea.

“It’s for jobs. It’s for money to the state of Minnesota. These are things that we’re crying out for,” said Day, now president of a group called Racino Now.

The Senate sponsor is Democratic Sen. Dan Sparks of Austin.

No hearings are imminent.