Fairmount Park to be sold if Illinois legalizes slots

The parent company of a casino in East St. Louis, Ill., has reached an agreement to purchase nearby Fairmount Park if the Illinois legislature legalizes slot machines at the track, the company, CQ Holdings, announced.

The maneuver is designed to protect CQ’s Casino Queen property, which sits on the Illinois side of the Mississippi River, approximately 10 miles west of Fairmount Park. Casino Queen is one of 10 casinos in operation in Illinois and one of two casinos in the East St. Louis area.

Though racing lobbyists have urged the state legislature to authorize slot machines at racetracks for a decade, the efforts have not been successful. The legislature, which is struggling to close an enormous budget deficit due to shortfalls in the state pension system, is contemplating two bills that could expand casino gambling, and one of those would allow for slot machines at racetracks, along with five new casino locations. The legislature’s current session is scheduled to end Sunday.

Both Casino Queen and Fairmount Park are struggling financially. In 2012, employees of the casino purchased the business through a stock-ownership plan. The casino said that Fairmount Park would be operated as a subsidiary if the legislature approves slot machines at the track, and that its current management would remain in place.

Fairmount is owned by a partnership whose majority owner is Bill Stiritz, a former chief executive of Ralston Purina, which is based in St. Louis.