Buffalo Grove betting site violated ordinance

Since off-track betting in Buffalo Grove was approved last year amid huge controversy, nary a peep has been heard about the betting at Adam's Roadhouse Sports Bar & Grill, 301 N. Milwaukee Ave.

But problems are popping up again, now that village leaders learned of a violation of the special use authorizing the facility.

Buffalo Grove required that the gambling facility's original operator, Inter-Track Partners, notify the village of any change in ownership. According to the ordinance, the special use terminates when ownership changes unless the village approves the new owners.

But ownership did change without the village knowing, according to a letter sent last week to the village by Jeff Kras, chief financial officer of Hawthorne Race Course Inc. Kras wrote that Inter-track Partners was dissolved on Sept. 15 and Hawthorne “acquired all the assets of the Buffalo Grove venue.”

Kras said he was unaware of the rule. So on Monday, Hawthorne Race Course and Adam's Roadhouse will ask the village board to amend the ordinance and continue the special use.

Deputy Village Manager Ghida Neukirch said the finance department noticed the issue when staff received a business renewal from the roadhouse with the name changed from Inter-Track to Hawthorne.

Neukirch and Kras both said from the standpoint of the Illinois Racing Board the license to operate the facility had always been in Hawthorne's name because Inter-Track was just a management company. Hawthorne, Kras added, was always a partner in the company and applied for all licenses.

“It's not like it was a complete change,” Neukirch said. “Hawthorne was always the player. They removed the middle person (Inter-Track).”

But the change still requires village board approval, since the ordinance approved the special use in Inter-Track's name, Neukirch said. She added that there has been no reason to shut down the operation.

“They have been cooperative with the village to get it resolved,” she said. “We don't want to shut down a business unless we absolutely have to.”

Buffalo Grove Trustee Jeffrey Braiman said the group should have asked officials for an amendment, but the problem isn't critical.

“It's not like there is somebody that we have no knowledge about or somebody from out of state,” he said. “It's one of the partners just taking over. I'm disappointed. I would have thought that they would have understood the process. Or their attorneys would have understood the process. But apparently it went by somebody.”

Since it opened, the wagering facility has been the source of few police complaints. Police Chief Steve Balinski said officers responded to 26 calls for service at the site since the start of 2009. Of those, 22 were handled by a single officer.

The revenue impact, though, has also been relatively minimal. Buffalo Grove Finance Director Scott Anderson said the village will gain about $70,000 from the site this year.

But Braiman said this is still helpful.

“Anytime we can receive $60 to $70,000 from a single user it's beneficial to us,” he said. “It pays basically for a police officer or a firefighter. That's important.”