Churchill Downs "agreed in principle" Thursday to
purchase Miami's Calder Race Course for $86M in a "long-
rumored deal that should be closed by March," according to
Clark Spencer of the MIAMI HERALD. Churchill President &
CEO Tom Meeker, whose publicly held company owns Churchill
Downs, said that the company is buying the thoroughbred
track "because of its profitability and Churchill's long-
term goal of creating a year-round, nationwide simulcasting
network." The acquisition of Calder would give Churchill
five tracks that operate between April 24 and January 2.
Meeker said that Churchill's plans are to "create a network
of tracks and package their simulcast signals to the
hundreds of outlets throughout the country under the
Churchill logo." Churchill will take an "active role" in
the track's day-to-day operations, but will "retain"
Calder's management team. Shares of Churchill increased 5/8
to $40 after yesterday's announcement (MIAMI HERALD, 1/22).
In Lexington, Louise Taylor writes that the deal signals
Churchill's "resolve to face casinos and sagging attendance
at racetracks by growing" (LEXINGTON HERALD-LEADER, 1/22).
