Turf Paradise may be threatened by lack of OTBs & horses

The cutoff of money from shuttered off-track-betting outlets and a lack of horses pose the biggest threats to beginning the upcoming racing season at Turf Paradise on time next month, horsemen were told Friday in Phoenix.

“What would stop the meet from going forward?” That question was posed to the Arizona Horsemen’s Benevolent and Protective Association from Gary Hartunian, whose Skyfall 7 company is nearly midway through a two-year lease to operate the racetrack.

Emails show concern about Turf Paradise finances.

“Most importantly, the (Arizona Racing) Commission or the Department (of Gaming) would revoke your permit,” Arizona HBPA president Bob Budoff told Hartunian. “Either the commission doesn’t issue your permit, or they revoke it. Or the horsepeople here decide that they’re going to take their horses out of here for whatever reason, so that there aren’t enough horses to run the meet.”

The exchange came during an Arizona HBPA meeting just before lunchtime in the track kitchen at Turf Paradise. Hartunian, who was at his business base in Southern California, took part through a teleconference that was open to the public.

The temporary shutdown of at least 36 OTB locations in the Phoenix area has stopped a flow of money that would have been used in purses for the 80-day meet that is scheduled to start Black Friday, Nov. 27. Skyfall 7 had its OTB permit suspended by the Arizona Department of Gaming after Turf Paradise owner Jerry Simms locked Hartunian’s team out of the track Oct. 10. Paulick Report said the shortfall from the cutoff of OTB money may reach $1 million.

Hartunian got an order from a federal arbitrator that restored Skyfall 7’s access to the track last Friday. Even so, the ADG told Budoff that it would not consider restoring the OTB permit until it meets next month, only eight days before the start of the new meet.

“This very morning in the last hour, we’ve received public notice from the department that the request to immediately open the OTBs was basically rejected,” Budoff said. “That it would be considered at the time of the hearing on Nov. 19 before the (Arizona Racing) Commission.”

Budoff said that Skyfall 7’s racing license also could be up for question.

“The live racing permit could be revoked based upon information that had been received by the department,” he said.

State regulators expressed concern about the immediate future of Turf Paradise after general manager Tom Ludt suddenly resigned Oct. 1 after nearly a year running day-to-day operations at the track. That worry was heightened a week later by the coordinated resignation of eight other senior managers.

Ludt told Thoroughbred Daily News that the exodus was prompted by $3.5 million in overdue bills. Hartunian has disputed that characterization, saying ex-employees who sabotaged the track offices on their way out the door were the reason he scrambled to make timely payments.

“They were all stripped out,” Hartunian said. “All my checks were taken out of the office. The computer systems were stripped out. Money was taken out of the money room. It was all stolen. All the satellites were cut off. The electricity was cut off in the building. We’re working our way through to get the information back in the computers that they stripped out.”

Hartunian accused some of the former staff of taking money out of the Turf Paradise purse fund, which the Arizona HBPA said had come up $542,000 short before the money was paid back Oct. 9.

“They did take some money out and transferred it out. They paid themselves,” Hartunian said. “People that resigned paid themselves in advance for two weeks. So Jesse (Gerdus, the ex-finance director), Patty (Chakour, the former chief financial officer), Dave Johnson (former assistant GM), a few others, they took money out of the account. It was very unethical. ... Those people should not work for a racecourse ever again.”

Johnson told Horse Racing Nation on Friday he would not comment on the accusation. Gerdus and Chakour could not be reached for their reaction.

Hartunian disputed speculation that he has been late paying the rent to Simms, saying “my lease payment is $1 a year.” Informed by a federal arbitrator that Simms “opened up a big, big lawsuit,” Hartunian told the HBPA, “I will sue them. You guys can participate if you want, but if we get any money, I’ll share it with you folks, too.”

Simms, who has owned Turf Paradise since 2000, has been accused by Hartunian of not being forthright about the deteriorating condition of the track. Hartunian promised to take legal action to recover the money he paid to repair and rebuild parts of the track property, an amount he has said topped $3.2 million.

“I have a lot of money that he owes me, and I owe him a balance on a note that’s going to be litigated,” Hartunian said. “Those notes right now are in litigation. They have no effect on anything.”

Later, Hartunian took direct aim at Simms.

“He’s unbelievable,” he said. “I’ve got the texts right here. I could send them to you. He’s off his rocker.”

Simms said in a text to HRN on Friday that he had no comment.

Specific questions about payments to Roberts Communications for simulcast signals, a farm-equipment company for the leasing of tractors and the Jockeys’ Guild for insurance were answered by Hartunian with assurances that bills were being paid. He also vouched for one trainer’s expectation that the property’s training track was close to being ready for horses who started arriving Tuesday night.

“(Hartunian) said it will be open by Monday,” said Valorie Lund, who is on the HBPA board of directors. “I guess you have to get an ambulance crew and an outrider, but every question we had for him, he was very forthcoming.”

The status of the main dirt and turf tracks, however, was in limbo. Freddy Álvarez, who returned to the track maintenance team after saying this month he would work somewhere else this winter, told the HBPA that the renting of a second tractor blade could get the main dirt track up and running sooner.

“We don’t have the exact date when the blade is coming,” he told the meeting. “We tried to get it. Everything is rented out right now at the moment. We’re in the hands of the rental companies when they can get the blade here. If we have two blades, we can get it done within 10-14 days.”

Lund’s declaration that “there won’t be live racing this year if we don’t support Gary Hartunian and Skyfall” was offset by skepticism from owners and trainers wary of Hartunian’s business relationship with Simms.

“I had planned this year to come down to Turf Paradise,” said Jody Peetz, who owns horses campaigning in the Pacific Northwest. “We were hoping to get some sort of synergy between Turf Paradise and Emerald Downs. But honest to God, listening to you guys, it’s like two guys in a pissing match. I really wish you would get this straightened out. ... I really want to come and support this meet, but listening to this, I’m just stunned. I’m totally stunned.”

With Eureka Downs boss Mike Weiss expected to arrive in a matter of days to become the new general manager at Turf Paradise, Hartunian said he was more than confident the new race meet will start on time in five weeks.

“I’m spending money out of my own pocket to keep the meet going,” Hartunian said. “I’m positive.”

Horse Racing Nation covered the meeting by monitoring a live teleconference Friday.