Oak Grove Set to Open Gaming Operations on September 18th

Oak Grove Set to Open Gaming Operations on September 18th

Gaming Floor, Restaurants and Event Center will Open to the Public, Followed by Hotel and Other Amenities Later in Fall 2020

 

OAK GROVE, KY., (August 19, 2020) – Oak Grove Racing, Gaming & Hotel (“Oak Grove” or the “Property”) announced today that it will open its historical racing machine (“HRM”) gaming floor, four restaurants and event center to the public on Friday, September 18, 2020 at 10 a.m. CST. The hotel, equestrian center, amphitheater, RV Park as well as the second season of live harness racing at the Property in Oak Grove, Kentucky will follow later in the fall.  

“We are thrilled to finally open our doors and welcome guests in just a few shorts weeks,” said Darold Londo, President and General Manager of Oak Grove. “We have an exceptional team assembled ready to deliver what we know will be a premier entertainment experience and destination for Christian County, Western Kentucky and the entire region.”

Construction on the Property began in April 2019 and continued with only minor delays through the COVID-19 pandemic. The $200 million development project is located off Interstate 24 Exit 86 near Clarksville, Tennessee and across from the Ft. Campbell Army Post.

Oak Grove will open and operate under capacity restrictions in compliance with State and local requirements as well as follow all Center for Disease Control (CDC) recommendations. The “Churchill Downs Incorporated (CDI) 360 Degree Approach to Safety” will also be implemented which includes initiatives to facilitate social distancing, personal protection and enhanced cleaning.  

Up to 1,300 state-of-the-art HRMs will make up the initial gaming floor with themes from Ainsworth, Scientific Games and International Gaming Technology companies. The dining options will include Garrison Oak Steakhouse, quick serve eateries Lucky Lime Tex Mex and SGT. Peppers Po’Boys and Burgers and O’Dark Thirty Coffee House. Oak Grove will boast additional food and beverage amenities upon opening including a feature sports bar with state-of-the-art LED panels and large format TVs, the Peak-A-Boo bar and a luxurious lobby bar.    

Live harness racing will return to Oak Grove in October and November for the second fall meet and will feature 12:30 p.m. post times daily. The meet will resume on Wednesday, October 14th and Thursday, October 15th, and then continue on Mondays, Tuesdays and Wednesdays from October 19th through November 11, 2020.

The 128-room hotel and 30-slip RV Park are slated to open in early-to-mid October. Completion dates for the Amphitheater and Equestrian Center are expected by November 2020.

The development of the Oak Grove property resulted in an estimated 800 construction jobs and, upon completion will create nearly 400 direct full and part time-equivalent employment positions.

Oak Grove is owned and operated by CDI. For more information, visit www.oakgrovegaming.com.

Certain statements made in this news release contain various “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the “safe harbor” provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements are typically identified by the use of terms such as “anticipate,” “believe,” “could,” “estimate,” “expect,” “intend,” “may,” “might,” “plan,” “predict,” “project,” “seek,” “should,” “will,” and similar words or similar expressions (or negative versions of such words or expressions). 

Although we believe that the expectations reflected in such forward-looking statements are reasonable, we can give no assurance that such expectations will prove to be correct. Important factors, among others, that may affect actual results or outcomes include the following: the impact of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic and related economic matters on our results of operations, financial conditions and prospects; the effect of economic conditions on our consumers’ confidence and discretionary spending or our access to credit; additional or increased taxes and fees; public perceptions or lack of confidence in the integrity of our business or any deterioration in our reputation; loss of key or highly skilled personnel; restrictions in our debt facilities limiting our flexibility to operate our business; general risks related to real estate ownership, including fluctuations in market values and environmental regulations; catastrophic events and system failures disrupting our operations; online security risk, including cyber-security breaches; inability to recover under our insurance policies for damages sustained at our properties in the event of inclement weather and casualty events; increases in insurance costs and inability to obtain similar insurance coverage in the future; inability to identify and complete acquisition, expansion or divestiture projects, on time, on budget or as planned; difficulty in integrating recent or future acquisitions into our operations; costs and uncertainties relating to the development of new venues and expansion of existing facilities; risks associated with equity investments, strategic alliances and other third-party agreements; inability to respond to rapid technological changes in a timely manner; inadvertent infringement of the intellectual property of others; inability to protect our own intellectual property rights; payment-related risks, such as risk associated with fraudulent credit card and debit card use; compliance with the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act or applicable money-laundering regulations; risks related to pending or future legal proceedings and other actions; inability to negotiate agreements with industry constituents, including horsemen and other racetracks; work stoppages and labor issues; changes in consumer preferences, attendance, wagering and sponsorship with respect to Churchill Downs Racetrack and the Kentucky Derby; personal injury litigation related to injuries occurring at our racetracks; weather and other conditions affecting our ability to conduct live racing; the occurrence of extraordinary events, such as terrorist attacks and public health threats; changes in the regulatory environment of our racing operations; increased competition in the horse racing business; difficulty in attracting a sufficient number of horses and trainers for full field horse races; our inability to utilize and provide totalizator services; changes in regulatory environment of our online horse wagering business; A reduction in the number of people wagering on live horse races; increase in competition in our online horse racing wagering business; uncertainty and changes in the legal landscape relating to our online horse racing wagering business; continued legalization of online sports betting and iGaming in the United States and our ability to predict and capitalize on any such legalization; inability to expand our sports betting operations and effectively compete; failure to manage risks associated with sports betting; failure to comply with laws requiring us to block access to certain individuals could result in penalties or impairment with respect to our mobile and online wagering products; increased competition in our casino business; changes in regulatory environment of our casino business; concentration and evolution of slot machine manufacturing and other technology conditions that could impose additional costs; and inability to collect gaming receivables from the customers to whom we extend credit.

We do not undertake any obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by law.

 

Image of the Oak Grove logo reads "Oak Grove" with horse head logo between the two words and "Racing • Gaming • Hotel" written underneath all in tall sans-serif lettering