Pennsylvania company agrees to buy Sunland Park

Gaming and Leisure Properties Inc. plans to acquire the real estate assets of Sunland Park Racetrack & Casino. GLPI will acquire the real estate assets of Sunland Park for $183.75 million.

The transaction expands the Pennsylvania-based real estate investment trust's relationship with Strategic Gaming Management, an acquisitive operator of domestic casino assets.

With the closing of the transaction, which is expected to occur on Oct. 15, Sunland Park will be GLPI’s second property in New Mexico. The company already owns Zia Park in Hobbs, N.M. Sunland Park, located in southern New Mexico, along the Texas border, serves the El Paso-Las Cruces gaming market, which has a high population and income growth. Given state regulatory protections, Sunland Park is uniquely positioned to operate in a stable gaming environment.

Peter Carlino, GLPI’s chairman and CEO, said, “Through our acquisition of Sunland Park, we are again diversifying our property portfolio, while again supporting the growth strategy of an existing tenant, as we deepen our relationship with Strategic Gaming, a dynamic and growing gaming operator.”

Opened in 1959, Sunland Park is on about 157 acres and offers 738 slots and 12 electronic gaming tables across a 25,000-square-foot gaming floor. The property includes a one-mile Thoroughbred and quarter-horse racetrack with a 733-seat stadium. It hosts a 600-person ballroom, a simulcast wagering area and a 78-room, third-party hotel. The property also has underutilized acreage that provides significant expansion and performance uplift opportunities.