Owner of Hoosier Park defaults on interest payment

ANDERSON, Ind. (WISH) - The company that owns Anderson’s Hoosier Park horse track and casino has missed a $13.4 million interest payment on its loans. The missed payment means the company, Centaur Gaming, is now in default with its lenders.

The general manager of gaming at Hoosier Park said he’s confident Centaur will overcome the setback, but he’s not ruling out the possibility of Chapter 11 bankruptcy for the company.

The casino portion of the facility opened just last year in early June. It was unfortunate timing, with the economy sliding south.

The general manager of gaming at Hoosier Park said, even though the casino has done well in a bad economy, revenues haven’t been good enough to enable the company to make its latest interest payment.

“It would be the heavy debt and the high interest rates on that debt, which was approved at a time when interest rates were at a very high rate,” said Jim Brown. “And our operations are very successful and Hoosier Park is doing wonderfully and we will continue to operate Hoosier Park as we have in the past.”

The executive director of the Indiana Gaming Commission, Ernie Yelton, echoed Jim Brown’s feelings that Hoosier Park’s revenues are “pretty attractive,” about fifth or sixth among Indiana’s 13 casinos.

Yelton said the Indiana Gaming Commission really has no concerns with regards to whether Hoosier Park will come out all right.

Centaur also owns a casino in Colorado and wants to develop a race track and casino in Pennsylvania.

It has filed a Chapter 11 bankruptcy petition for two subsidiaries involved in that Pennsylvania development.