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State may take over OTB as city washes its hands

By David Freedlander, amNewYork Staff Writer
More stories | dfreedlander@am-ny.com

June 12, 2008

Off Track Betting (OTB) at 38th Street and 7th Avenue in Manhattan. (Tiffany L. Clark / June 11, 2008)

State officials are scrambling to find a way to keep the lights on in the city's 68 Off-Track Betting Parlors, with just days left to negotiate a compromise.

Gov. David Paterson Wednesday refused to rule out a state takeover of the agency after Mayor Michael Bloomberg said that Sunday--Father's Day--was the absolute last day OTBs in the city would remain open without a change in the city/state revenue sharing plan.

"I don't know if we can beat the deadline," Paterson told the Associated Press. "Obviously, because a number of people would lose jobs and it would be a problem, it's a priority for us right now."

In Albany, members of the legislature held intense negotiating sessions with officials from the city, according to Scott Reif, a spokesman for Senate Majority Leader Joseph Bruno (R-Brunswick.)

"We expect to be able to resolve the issue before the deadline," Reif said.

A source close to the negotiations said that the Senate plans to introduce a state takeover bill Thursday.

In New York City, meanwhile, some dedicated racing fans started to make other plans for a final shutdown.

"This is where I make my money. I'll go to Belmont," said John Macko, Jr., 67, of Bensonhurst.

"That Bloomberg is trying to close us down. Shame on him. I hope Paterson hears us."

Currently, OTB takes in about $125 million per year, but due to a complicated arrangement with the state, it must pay out more than it takes in, leaving the city holding the bag.

Bloomberg has said that it is an unsustainable relationship, and has demanded that the formula be changed or the state take over the operation entirely.

Wednesday, representatives from DC 37, the union that represents OTB employees, rallied on the steps of City Hall and urged action to save the 1,500 jobs that would be lost if the parlors were shuttered.

Some, though, said the end couldn't come soon enough.

"Look at this place, it's disgusting," said Barry Stevens, 66, of New Jersey, a recovering gambling addict who admitted to being lured in recently by the siren call of a Midtown OTB branch.

"They should have closed it down ten years ago. This is the best thing the Mayor's ever done."