Penn National Gaming

Penn National Gaming, which owns Charles Town Races & Slots, has entered into a tentative agreement to be sold for about $8.9 billion. Find out more in Saturday's Herald-Mail.

WYOMISSING, Pa. - Peter M. Carlino, chairman and chief executive officer of Penn National Gaming Inc., has been named Best Performing CEO for 2004 by HVS Executive Search, a leading human resources consulting firm dedicated to the gaming, lodging and restaurant industries. The award, which was announced in the October 2004 issue of Casino Journal, was presented to Carlino in Las Vegas during the Global Gaming Expo. The award is based on an annual study that analyzes the prior year's performance of a CEO relative to his or her peers based on corporate financial growth, decision-making methodology and application of the HVS Pay-for-Performance Model, which evaluates financial results relative to a CEO's total compensation.

CHARLES TOWN, W.Va. - Jay Fortney, who helped oversee renovations of Charles Town Races as president and general manager, announced Thursday he was resigning for health reasons. He has not been working while recuperating from heart bypass surgery in December. Fortney said in a prepared statement that his recuperation "has not been satisfactory. My physicians have concluded that I am physically unfit at the present time to return to the stress of my current position, even on a part-time basis.

WYOMISSING, Pa. (AP) - Penn National Gaming Inc. has purchased the remaining minority interest in West Virginia's Charles Town Races for $6 million. Penn National bought the 11 percent interest from BDC Group, its joint venture partner in West Virginia, on March 15, the company announced Thursday. The Charles Town Races, now a fully-owned subsidiary of Penn National, is a thoroughbred racetrack in Jefferson County with 1,500 slot machines. The company reported $15.8 million in earnings in 1999.

charlestown@herald-mail.com CHARLES TOWN, W.Va. - A new thoroughbred racing track at Charles Town Races & Slots - which was closed due to a drainage problem - is expected to reopen Saturday, a track official said Thursday. The track has been closed since Sept. 15 because wet areas were discovered on the oval, said an official with Penn National Gaming, Inc., which owns the track. It was important to correct the wet areas track because ignoring them can cause an uneven racing surface, said Eric Schippers, vice president of public affairs for Penn National Gaming.

The issue: Charles Town Races & Slots is preparing to ask for an election in Jefferson County in hopes of getting approval from county residents to have casino table games at the track. What happened: John Finamore, Senior Vice President of Regional Operations for Penn National Gaming Inc., which owns Charles Town Races & Slots, told the Jefferson County Commissioners Thursday morning that track owners have not picked an election date. But the issue will probably be addressed "soon," Finamore said.

GETTYSBURG, Pa. - Penn National Gaming would develop and manage the resort and gaming operations of a casino-hotel proposed between Gettysburg and the Mason-Dixon Line, according to a news release issued Tuesday. Gettysburg native David LeVan and former Penn National Gaming vice president Joseph A. Lashinger Jr. have been working to develop Mason-Dixon Resort & Casino at the existing Eisenhower Hotel & Conference Center on Emmitsburg Road. On Tuesday, they issued a news release announcing Penn National committed the funding for the $75 million project's development, construction and opening.

CHARLES TOWN, W.VA. Charles Town Races & Slots is committed to preserving horse racing, and the company that owns the oval plans about $200 million in improvements to the track if table games are added to the facility, a track official said Thursday. If table games are added at the track, a 500-room hotel would be built, as well as at least 25,000 square feet in conference meeting space, said Peter Carlino, chairman and chief executive officer of Penn National Gaming Inc., which owns the track.

By DAVE McMILLION Staff Writer, Charles Town CHARLES TOWN, W.Va. - Penn National Gaming Inc. is expected to sign the final papers to purchase the Charles Town Races around the end of the month, track President Roger Ramey said Tuesday. Meanwhile, architects and engineers have already started some of the preliminary work on the renovation of the 63-year-old oval, Ramey said. "As soon as the changeover in ownership takes place, you can start to see some dirt flying," said Ramey.

charlestown@herald-mail.com CHARLES TOWN, W.Va. - Less than a month after opening a new $8 million racing surface, the thoroughbred track at Charles Town Races & Slots has been shut down due to a drainage problem, a Penn National Gaming Inc. official said Monday. The track was closed last Wednesday and Thursday because of wet areas discovered on the oval, said Eric Schippers, vice president of public affairs for Penn National Gaming Inc., which owns the track. Then the track was closed Friday due to the remnants of Hurricane Ivan passing through the area, Schippers said.

For years, gamblers at Hollywood Casino at Charles Town Races were limited to $5 for each spin of a slot machine. But, in July, the West Virginia Lottery Commission gave the casino permission to increase the maximum bet per spin to $100. "With the ability to now bet $5, $10, $25 and $100 a spin, the Slot City area of the gaming floor just got hotter," casino General Manager Al Britton said in a statement. "Now, guests will have the opportunity to wager more per spin on the newest multi-coin machines featuring themes such as Double Diamond Deluxe and Poseidon.

There's the "Whopper," " The Foot Long" and "All You Can Eat. " Now make way for "The Beast," the signature menu item at the new Skybox Sports Bar at Hollywood Casino at Charles Town Races. The Beast made its official debut Friday at the grand opening celebration of the Skybox Sports Bar and the H Lounge beneath it. They are the last projects completed in the casino's $40 million expansion that began last July with the opening of the first table games. The new Final Cut Steakhouse opened in November.

Soon, for the first time in 35 years, Jeff Coy will be without a job in the public sector. Coy, who began his career as a legislative assistant, represented Franklin and Cumberland counties for 22 years in the Pennsylvania House of Representatives, then served three, two-year terms on the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board. Coy, 59, has reached his term limit on the gaming board. He'll step down in a couple weeks after his successor passes required background checks. "I've enjoyed public life.

GETTYSBURG, Pa. -- Signs proclaiming "No Casino" and "Pro Casino" dotted the landscape in Adams County, Pa., Tuesday, but they were dwarfed by the electronic one announcing large volumes of vehicular and pedestrian traffic approaching a hearing being held by the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board. Nearly 400 people registered to speak about the perceived benefits and pitfalls of a proposal by Mason-Dixon Resorts LP. Gettysburg businessman David LeVan is spearheading planning for a $75 million resort and casino that would be operated by Penn National Gaming.

GETTYSBURG, Pa. -- Feedback about a casino proposed in Adams County, Pa., will be accepted at a public hearing scheduled for Aug. 31. The Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board is considering whether to grant a Category 3 resort casino license for Mason-Dixon Resorts LP. The license would allow for up to 600 slot machines and up to 50 table games at the existing Eisenhower Hotel & Conference Center on Emmitsburg Road, four miles north of the Mason-Dixon...

GETTYSBURG, Pa. - Penn National Gaming would develop and manage the resort and gaming operations of a casino-hotel proposed between Gettysburg and the Mason-Dixon Line, according to a news release issued Tuesday. Gettysburg native David LeVan and former Penn National Gaming vice president Joseph A. Lashinger Jr. have been working to develop Mason-Dixon Resort & Casino at the existing Eisenhower Hotel & Conference Center on Emmitsburg Road. On Tuesday, they issued a news release announcing Penn National committed the funding for the $75 million project's development, construction and opening.

CHARLES TOWN, W.VA. -- Table games are coming to Charles Town. Jefferson County voters on Saturday approved the addition of the games at Charles Town Races & Slots by a 3-2 margin with all 32 precincts reporting, according to complete but unofficial results. Of the 10,622 votes that were cast, 6,279 (59 percent) were in favor of adding poker, blackjack, roulette and craps to the more than 5,000 slot machines at the thouroughbred racetrack. "It's a good day," local school board president Peter Dougherty said.

Better-paying jobs a good reason to support table games To the editor: We are consistently bombarded with phrases such as "affordable housing, affordable health care, living wage, etc. " I want to look at one of these claims in depth and pose a question to the readers. As we all know, on Saturday, Jefferson County residents will be asked to vote on whether Penn National Gaming will be allowed to expand Charles Town Races & Slots by offering table games as one of their products.

o Jefferson Co. residents to vote on table games o Lawmaker changes stand on table games o Measuring impact part of table games equation o Racetrack officials: Table games would bring jobs to Jefferson County o Jefferson Co. residents offer mixed opinions on table games CHARLES TOWN, W.Va. -- A drop of millions of dollars in live wagering, the decision by track owners to close the track in 1995 after a video lottery defeat at the hands of voters and a shortage of horses to run races at the track were among the problems that plagued Charles Town Races & Slots 14 years ago. "I've seen the worst here," said longtime Charles Town horseman Ann Hilton.