Hastings Exposition and Racing Shifts Plans, Moves Racino Project to Ogallala

Hastings Exposition and Racing, the group in charge of organizing horse races in Hastings, Nebraska, has opted to abandon its plans for a horse racing casino in the city, which is a huge development in the world of horse racing and casinos. According to trustworthy sources, the company, managed by Brian Becker, plans to relocate its racing license to Ogallala, a town in western Nebraska.

According to sources, Hastings Exposition and Racing recently applied to the Nebraska Racing and Gaming Commission for a racing license for 2024. The proposal discloses the group’s aim to build a multi-track Quarter Horse “racino” near Ogallala rather than Hastings. Elite Casino Resorts has been named as the group’s potential partner for the project, which is expected to take up a large 174-acre site in the city of Western Nebraska. This huge endeavor is expected to be worth $100 million.

The decision to relocate the license follows the repeal of an earlier ordinance authorizing the establishment of a casino and racing complex in north Hastings by the Hastings City Council. Instead, the permit was issued to Prairie Thunder LLC and West Fork, Inc., who intend to use the property for a racing facility. A Hastings city representative noted shortly that the change in plans was purely a commercial decision.

As a result, Hastings Exposition and Racing decided to pursue the racing license for the Ogallala venue. Brian Jorde, a spokeswoman for the Hastings-based company, stated the group’s anticipation for the commission’s approval to proceed with the project in a statement to the Nebraska Examiner. Jorde stressed that the move would benefit everyone concerned, especially because it would bring expansion chances to a region that has previously been disregarded by the sector. “Western Nebraska always gets shut out,” Jorde observed. “Our plan is to establish operations in Ogallala, then expand to Gering, creating a Quarter Horse circuit between the two locations.”

As previously stated, Hastings Exposition and Racing, in collaboration with Elite Casino Resorts, intends to build a 5/8 mile racecourse with up to 400 stalls near Interstate 80 in Ogallala. According to KSNB, the proposed development will also include a casino resort with a 180-room hotel and a gaming area with 640 slots, 20 gaming tables, and a poker room. The proposed resort in Ogallala will be known as “Lake Mac Casino Resort and Racetrack.”

Following these recent advances, if the Nebraska Racing and Gaming Commission awards the racing license to Hastings Exposition and Racing, the firm, in partnership with its partner, will be on track to quickly launch the Ogallala project. Following the state’s widespread support of casino gaming in 2020, this endeavor would be a crucial milestone in bringing casino gambling to Western Nebraska.

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