On a 4-1 vote, Arcadia City Council gave first reading to an ordinance whereby the City elects to receive a 1/3 of 1% of parimutual wagers at Santa Anita Park Race Track. Adoption means the city will not charge an admission tax.
An ordinance will be introduced for first reading by Arcadia City Council whereby the city would receive .33 of 1% of parimutuel wagers at Santa Anita Park race track. If ordinance is approved, city would eliminate admission tax.
Council revises tax for admissions over race track protests. The revisions recommended apply to the existing admissions tax (a tax on other events, entertainment, amusement or competition other than horse racing held on premises with a capacity of 1,000 or more.)
A bill that could generate an estimated $700,000 yearly in additional race track revenue for Arcadia cleared the State Assembly on Thursday and now heads for the Senate. The bill, AB 2780, seeks to authorize Arcadia and other cities to collect up to 1/3 of 1% of the total amount bet at a race track within their boundaries if the city were willing to forego any tax on admissions or parking. Arcadia has never charged a parking tax at Santa Anita Park. Arcadia city officials are neutral at this point, according to City Manager George Watts.
Santa Anita Park completed its most successful season ever with $445 million wagered. Total attendance was also an all-time high. The admission tax netted the city $1.1 million. The Park's other contributions to the city are discussed.
5,133 attended the first day of inter-track wagering at Santa Anita Park where wagering was offered on racing at Del Mar. $1,069,980 was wagered on the simulcast races. Santa Anita Park is one of 10 off-track wagering satellites.
The city of Arcadia has already received two checks from Santa Anita Park race track, the first payments on its one-third of 1% of the parimutuel take.
Santa Anita Park race track attendance is on the upswing. It drew 40,810 on Friday, its biggest opening day turnout since 2011. On-track attendance was up 33% over last year, partly because of the free infield admission program, which drew more than 10,000 people. Total wagering, including bets placed from all over the country, rose nearly 30% to more than $17 million. On-site betting was more than $3.4 million. The City of Arcadia gets 1/3 of 1% of all on-site wagering.
Air conditioning is being installed at the track as part of $3.4 million in improvements being made this summer in preparation for the first season of inter-track wagering offered at Santa Anita Park this year from July 27 to September 14.
Because of negative reactions by neighbors, it is "very doubtful" that Santa Anita Park race track will put a helipad on the north side of its property.
The Anheuser-Busch Inc. brewery will move its Clydesdale horses from the Santa Anita Park race track stables because of a disagreement in the cost of housing them.
Gov. Pete Wilson has signed a tax cut bill that cuts in half the amount of taxes race tracks pay on daily wagering. The news was greeted with enthusiasm at Santa Anita Park.
Local 280 of the Parimutuel Guild of California voted not to strike Santa Anita Park on opening day. The track had made contingency plans in preparation for the threatened strike but the clerks endorsed the proposed contract raising clerks pay at satellite wagering sites.
Santa Anita Park Race Track would like to build a helipad on the hillside on the north edge of its property and has sent a letter to its neighbors to the north asking if they have any objections.
Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, and his entourage of International Equestrian Federation dignitaries, Olympic officials, FBI men and race track officials toured Santa Anita Park, site of the 1984 Olympic equestrian events on Wednesday.