The $125-million proposal calls for a thoroughbred racing complex with up to 500 video lottery slot machines, a 164-room hotel and an upscale restaurant and convention center at the Michigan State Fairgrounds.
The proposal was submitted to the state, which owns the fairgrounds, late Friday. The plan was submitted by Detroit Thoroughbred Raceway Inc., led by developer Andrew G. McLemore Jr. Under the proposal the horse racing and video gambling complex could be up and running by the fall of 2005.
The governor's office has not yet issued a comment on the proposal, a spokeswoman tells GlobeSt.com.
The complex would not only return thoroughbred racing to the fairgrounds, but also generate 1,900 permanent jobs and hundreds of temporary construction jobs and solidify the future of the Michigan State Fair, according to the plan.
The annual fair has generally been running at about break-even financial results for the past several years, after years of operating deep in the red. The Blackout of 2003 coincided with one of the fair's two weekend and caused the fair to lose money in 2003.
According to the developers, the proposal would also generate $23.5 million in annual tax revenue for the city and state.
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