Gaming being done right
Just another case of “be careful what you wish for...”
In its bid to be licensed as the state’s one and only slots-only parlor, Plainridge Racecourse got a much needed lesson in how not to do business from the Massachusetts Gaming Commission.
Earlier this week the commission not only rejected the Plainridge bid but issued a devastating report on what it called “deeply troubling” practices at the raceway — a report that begs to be turned over to law enforcement for further action.
Commission investigators found that longtime head of the track Gary Piontkowski was apparently in the habit of making withdrawals from the track’s money room.
“When the money was not repaid, it was recharacterized at the end of each year as a ‘distribution’ to Piontkowski” in addition to his regular salary.
When investigators made their findings known internally last spring Piontkowski was replaced, but then rewarded by the board with a golden parachute, leading the Gaming Commission to comment in its final report that attempts at corrective action were “way too little, way too late.”
As for Piontkowski’s hastily named replacement, the commission found, “Little to none of his experience is in the gaming arena; nor does he have any relevant experience as a chief operating officer, an organizational change agent or a manager of performance standards and metrics.”
Raynham Park, a former dog track now reduced to being a simulcast parlor, did get a positive finding from the commission but still faces a local referendum and competition from three other bidders for the slots license. [Raynham did NOT receive a UNANIMOUS VOTE from the Gam[bl]ing Commission because of questions about securities fraud.]
What the Plainridge finding does accomplish — beyond putting a stake in the heart of one track’s ambitions — is to show how thoroughly and competently the Gaming Commission is going about its responsibilities.
And while we have faulted them for the glacial pace at which they seem to be working, this time the effort was impressive. - See more at: http://bostonherald.com/news_opinion/opinion/editorials/2013/08/gaming_being_done_right#sthash.pOHvfsRI.dpuf
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