Calder Layoffs Coming as Result of Lease Deal
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Details are emerging on the jobs that will be lost at Calder Casino & Race Course as a result of the lease of its racing operations to South Florida neighbor Gulfstream Park.
Calder in Miami Gardens, Fla., is eliminating 246 jobs, according to a notice posted July 7 on the Florida Department of Economic Opportunity's website.
The state agency's notice said the positions are being terminated Sept. 2. A spokeswoman for that agency did not have information on the departments in which Calder is eliminating those jobs.
An official at the Louisville, Ky., headquarters of Churchill Downs Inc. (CDI), Calder's parent company, confirmed July 8 that the job reductions are related to the agreement with Gulfstream. It is anticipated that CDI on July 9 will provide details on severance packages and other aspects of the layoffs, including how many of the jobs are full-time positions.
The number of pre-layoff jobs at Calder was not readily available.
There have been reports that Calder is eliminating entire departments, including its racing office, that are not part of its casino operations. Calder, now dark for three months, closed it grandstand building for simulcasting July 1. Gulfstream racing officials will run the race meet at Calder from Oct. 7 to Nov. 30.
On July 1, the Florida Division of Pari-Mutuel Wagering approved the Gulfstream/Calder deal that runs through June 2020.
The deal eliminates the head-to-head weekend racing that the two tracks held from last July through this June 29. Each year, Gulfstream will have 10 months of racing and Calder will have two months. CDI continues to own Calder and continues to run its casino.