This entry was posted on 3/10/2007 4:17 PM and is filed under uncategorized.
Arcadia First! likes to try to scare Arcadians by using fear-mongering headlines and lightning rod words such as "racino" to suggest there will be slot machines, casinos and "new gambling" coming to the track, somehow supposedly tied to the proposed -- not yet approved -- Shops at Santa Anita retail development.
As with almost everything Arcadia First! says, there is not a shred of truth to this.
Now there is another insinuation making the rounds that Santa Anita Park is guilty by association with San Manuel Indian Bingo and Casino.
The key word there is "Indian." Indian casinos have been and will likely continue to be successful preventing anyone but Native Americans from operating casinos in California. The last thing they would do is strike up a business relationship with any entity that they perceive as a threat to their casino business.
Their relationship with Santa Anita is quite simple -- it's a marketing alliance, no different than any number of non-casino companies have with any number of Indian and Las Vegas casinos.
Once again, Santa Anita Park, a treasured and historic icon of Arcadia, finds itself in the position of having to defend itself against reckless and unfounded charges and implications.
Santa Anita Park officials recently released a statement to the city and Arcadia Wins! clarifying for the umpteenth time that the track has no plans for any casino games or bingo at the property.
Legitimate questions are fair game. Knowingly disseminating inflammatory half-truths and innuendo without first checking the facts or offering the accused an opportunity to respond -- especially in a faux "newspaper" -- is beyond unethical and shameful journalism and even beyond good clean competition. It is disrespectful to the very entity most Arcadians are trying to preserve because of its multiple values to the core of the city.
A full copy of the statement is below.
Scott Hettrick
founder, Arcadia Wins!
Santa Anita Park has traditionally sought partnerships and sponsorships with compatible advertisers and marketers. These arrangements not only bring in funds to support Santa Anita’s marketing programs but often allow us to reach new audiences of customers.
This year’s association with San Manuel Indian Bingo and Casino is no different. In exchange for a sponsorship fee and marketing considerations, Santa Anita Park has allowed San Manuel access to its daily racing fans through title sponsorship of major races at Santa Anita, logos on television, print and banner advertising, booths, displays and accommodations for preferred San Manuel patrons. The sponsorship is reciprocal in that San Manuel has created marketing plans offering incentives to send its clientele to Santa Anita to attend the races. San Manuel also reaches Santa Anita’s mailing list recipients with ads sent via the racetrack’s direct mail newsletter.
Santa Anita Park has had a similar arrangement with the Las Vegas Hilton for the past two years. And Del Mar, a racetrack in the San Diego area, recently concluded a sponsorship association with Barona Hotel and Casino and is now a marketing partner of Viejas Casino . None of these relationships has involved anything on the racetracks’ end other than parimutuel wagering on Thoroughbred horse racing, something Santa Anita Park has been doing since 1934.
San Manuel would not have entered into this sponsorship with Santa Anita if we had any intention of installing slot machines at the racetrack, or the proposed Caruso Affliated project, “The Shops at Santa Anita.” All California Indian tribes strongly support current California law that mandates that slot machines are only legal on tribal land. In addition, there are also no plans for casino games or bingo at Santa Anita Park or the “The Shops at Santa Anita” project.
