New Nebraska racetrack, casino proposed for Fremont

Fremont would be the seventh proposal across the state for additional casinos, beyond the six licensed racetracks that already are eligible to build casinos under Nebraska law.

Paul Bauer, a real estate agent with kwElite in Omaha, said he represents KRG Investment Group. He said Fremont seems well positioned to build and host a new horse-racing facility with an accompanying gambling and hotel venue.

“We’re in the early stages of due diligence discussions with the City of Fremont,” he said. “And the City of Fremont’s actually identified four potential sites for us.”

Members of the Nebraska Racing and Gaming Commission have yet to say whether they favor authorizing additional racetrack casinos at this time. Gambling opponents have called for a pause in granting new licenses until the impact of the ones already licensed can be studied.

Nebraska voters in 2020 approved a ballot initiative linking casino development to racing licenses. That means that anyone who wants to build a casino in Nebraska, other than the six existing racing license holders, must win state approval for a racetrack.

On Friday, Bauer is slated to brief the commission’s members on the Fremont proposal during their monthly meeting.

Commissioners are also scheduled to hear from a consulting firm that produced a report that could influence whether new racetrack casinos are authorized.

State lawmakers required the commission to study the statewide horse-racing and casino markets and also examine the socioeconomic impact of horse racing and casino gambling statewide.

Under state law, commissioners must consider the impact when approving or denying new licenses. The law requires the commission to deny an application for a racetrack or casino gambling license if approval would be “detrimental” to the racing or gambling market “that exists across the state” based on the market studies.

The report says there is “more than sufficient capacity with the state’s existing six racing licenses to allow for a tripling or quadrupling of racing in Nebraska.”

The six licensed racetracks eligible for casinos are: Legacy Downs in Lincoln, Fonner Park in Grand Island, Horsemen’s Park in Omaha, Atokad in South Sioux City, FairPlay Park in Hastings and Columbus Exposition and Racing in Columbus.

Additional racetrack casinos have been proposed in Bellevue, Norfolk, York, North Platte, Gering, Kimball and now Fremont. Transfer of the Hastings racetrack license to Ogallala was approved conditionally by the commission, pending the results of the market study.