Watching Nothing

Thanks as always to the Watchful Horseman, keeping his watchful horseman's eye on the nothing happening with the still-mythical racino at the Big A.

And here's the link to Jerry Bossert's item in the NY Daily News today. As noted by Mr./Ms. Anonymous and by Steve Zorn, Senator Eric Adams, the newly appointed Chairman of the Senate Racing, Wagering and Gaming Committee, has no experience in racing that we know of, and his statement does indeed sound straight out of the governor's PR machine. And one could say that the senator reveals his ignorance of the subject when he cites the "partnership between NYRA and Delaware North" that he's so excited about. In fact, there is no actual partnership between the two other than the percentage of revenues that Delaware North will be statutorily obligated to turn over to NYRA when and if the facility is up and running. The company was selected by the governor, and any negotiations which may or may not be currently going on are between Delaware North and the state. Makes one wonder if the Chairman, who, as mentioned, has recently been in the news on other matters, has even a basic understanding of the proposed arrangement.

- New all-time lows today for the stock of Magna Entertainment in the wake of the collapse of the complicated spin-off plan that would have spared the company from having to repay its massive debt to controlling shareholder MI Developments next month. I tried to decipher the plan in this post last year. Matt Hegarty of the Form sums up the mountain of red ink.

Magna's most recent balance sheet lists $265 million in accounts payable, $71.9 million in short-term debt, $379.3 million in long-term debt, and $112 million in "other liabilities." It has lost $500 million over the past five years, and efforts by the company to raise money by selling tracks and structuring partnerships in its marquee tracks have failed.

Magna officials did not return phone calls Thursday.

Maybe their phones were turned off. The National Post of Canada ran the headline Magna Entertainment's race may be run.

That plan disintegrated this week after MID said new debt financing for the deal was "unlikely" to be found, given "current global economic conditions [and] the continued disruptions in the financial markets."

As a result, US$274-million in outstanding loans that MEC owes MID will be called in next month, potentially triggering a feeding frenzy among MEC's other creditors.

If it is unable to repay that sum alongside an outstanding balance on a US$40-million credit facility to an unnamed Canadian chartered bank, "substantially all of its other current and long-term debt will also become due on demand," the company said.
.....
MEC, the largest owner of horse racetracks in North America including Santa Anita in California, said negotiations with MID are continuing, which may include an extension on the repayment date of Mar. 20. [National Post]

Maybe Frank should put a call in to John Malone of Liberty Media, who, having rescued Sirius XM from a looming deadline for debt repayment, could also throw a lifeline to Frank and finally put HRTV on his DirectTV so we can FINALLY WATCH SOME DECENT RACING AROUND HERE instead of watching NOTHING on TVG!!!