Fort Erie -- not dead yet? · 29.01.09

Eulogies for Fort Erie, Canada’s oldest racetrack, may be premature.

Earlier this month, a local development group offered to buy the 111-year-old racing plant from its owners. The Fort Erie Economic Development and Tourism Corp. proposed running it as a not-for-profit corporation. The catch was that the Ontario provincial government was asked to underwrite the deal.

The original deadline was today (29 January), because the Ontario Racing Commission was due to rule on the application of Fort Erie’s current owners, Nordic Gaming Corp., for 2009 racing dates.

However, on Monday (26 January) the provincial government asked the Fort Erie EDTC to revise their application, saying that their proposal “has some merits” but that they still had some concerns. Because of this, the Ontario Racing Commission extended Nordic’s licence to 31 March.

There have been rumours that Fort Erie might survive, but this is the first concrete indication.

While we await further developments, here’s some reminiscences by a Niagara Falls reporter about visiting Fort Erie as a kid.

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