These are depressing times in Charles Town, a West Virginia town of 3,100 near Harpers Ferry and only 25 miles west of Frederick. Three years ago, the one plant in town moved. Now the 61-year-old race track is set to close on Sunday.
That's a calamity for a community like Charles Town, which lies in Jefferson County, a popular relocation home for federal
workers commuting into the Washington area and for retirees. The race track is the heart of the town.
Track owners expect to lose $1 million this year. Attendance is declining and so is the betting dollar. The problem is complex but can be traced to other forms of legalized gambling, off-track betting parlors in Maryland and the simulcasting of races from other tracks at Laurel and Pimlico.
The track owners did try one gambit to stave off a shutdown: a request to put in slot machines. But voters in Jefferson County rejected that proposal, 53 percent to 47 percent. They correctly assumed that slots were just the beginning, that casino gambling would be the next step. It would have dramatically transformed the community and relegated horse-racing to a secondary endeavor.
For workers at the track, these are dark days. Finding new jobs won't be easy in a sparsely populated region. Yet it still is premature to write the obituary for Charles Town. For venture capitalists with a love of horses, this track has vast potential.
Given an infusion of cash and an owner with creative marketing skills, Charles Town could again turn a profit. The track's proximity to the vast suburban markets in Maryland and Virginia has yet to be tapped. It can't rival Pimlico or Laurel, but the half-mile track is an appealing place to spend an evening or afternoon. And in a few years, there will be a major opportunity when Patriot Downs opens near Richmond. During summer months, there will be no live racing at Laurel and Pimlico. Charles Town could cash in.
Will someone come forth to save this track from oblivion? Unless the present owners make unreasonable demands, that could happen. The worst scenario would be for the owners to hold onto the shuttered track while pressing for a new referendum on slot machines. That kind of economic blackmail should not be condoned. Charles Town could make a stirring comeback, but only as a legitimate race track, not as a haven for one-armed bandits and other forms of casino gambling.