Gambling regulators postpone Magic City Casino buyout, want documents released
Florida regulators on Thursday indefinitely postponed the transfer of the gambling permit from Magic City Casino in Miami to an Alabama-based Native American tribe, putting a hold on the multimillion-dollar deal until more details are disclosed to the public.
Miami’s Havenick family and its West Flagler Associates company has entered into an asset purchase agreement with the Poarch Band of Creek Indians, operating as Wind Creek Miami, LLC, but it needs permission from the Florida Gaming Control Commission to transfer the gambling license, which allows it to operate slot machines, blackjack and other casino games in Miami.
The five members of the commission met in Tallahassee on Thursday and agreed that because the companies submitted an application that excluded from public disclosure 103 pages of a 110-page document they would seek a delay until the company decides to disclose more information to the public.
“My concern here is with the sunshine aspects of this,’’ said Commission Chairman John MacIver, who has reviewed the redacted material and recommended the issue be postponed. He said he had concluded that much of non-disclosed details will not be opposed if the public could review it.
“We cannot take any action as a collegial body without an opportunity for the public to provide meaningful input,’’ MacIver said.
“The level of meaningful input that is appropriate is something that belongs to the public to decide. Because there is some question about an over-redaction of the material, what is very likely not relevant to any legitimate opposition, material is probably redacted, but the general public has a right to see that material before we take any action.”
The five-member commission is appointed by the governor and confirmed by the state Senate.
For the last year, the Havenick family has been seeking a buyer for the casino, which has been in the family for generations and was known as Flagler Dog Track for most of that time. The Poarch tribe was the highest bidder at an undisclosed price, said John Lockwood, attorney for both West Flagler Associates, which owns Magic City Casino, and Wind Creek Miami, a subsidiary of Wind Creek Hospitality.
By August, the parties had obtained financing and Wind Creek agreed to acquire 100% of ownership and equity interest in the Magic City Casino permit, which includes a parimutuel operating license, card room license, and the slot machine license for the 2022-23 fiscal year.
Lockwood protested the committee’s decision. He said the permit transfer was a “basic ownership transfer” that has occurred with buyers who obtained permits for slot machines at the casinos in Dania Beach, Pompano Beach and Hallandale Beach.
“I would certainly implore the commission” not to delay the transfer until the end of the year, he told them. “As everyone’s aware, the global economic markets are volatile, to say the least. If we punt this issue beyond this commission meeting and in the next calendar year, I don’t know what that means for this transaction.”
Jay Dorris, president and CEO of Wind Creek Hospitality, said in an interview that he could not comment on what his company plans to do until after the commission approves the purchase.
“We continue to move forward with the purchase,’’ he said. “Out of deference to the commission, Wind Creek Hospitality will have no further comment about this transaction at this time.”
Wind Creek’s subsidiary, PCI Gaming Authority, already operates two card rooms in North Florida and, by acquiring one of South Florida’s largest operations, it would significantly expand its footprint in Florida.
Lockwood said he “will work with the commission and with the staff to provide a less redacted document” and urged the commission to return a final decision soon.
But John Sowinski, president of No Casinos, the advocacy group that has received support from anti-gambling advocates as well as the Seminole Tribe, which owns the competing Hard Rock casino near Hollywood, urged the commission to delay the vote to allow the public to vigorously review the permit transfer.
(The Seminole Tribe was among the backers of Amendment 3, which effectively limits the expansion of gambling without voter approval - except through a negotiated gambling compact with the tribe.)
One of the reasons the Legislature created the new commission to regulate gambling regulation is to “elevate the public discussion and bring out into the forefront these types of decisions that are made about the gambling industry in our state,’’ Sowinski said.
He added that because the application transfers a permit to operate “slot machines in the most highly populated area of our state, that merits a higher level of scrutiny.”
Commissioner Julie I. Brown agreed that the commission should conduct an intensive review of the application. She said that the information the commission received that was shielded from public view did not indicate whether there were other partners related to the ownership interests. Brown urged the staff to produce more details about how the potential owners were vetted.
MacIver directed the commission staff to work to resolve the conflict over the public records so the commission could make a decision before January if possible. He also warned the parties from engaging in any “gamesmanship.”
“We don’t want to get back into the — shall we say — environment where all of the stakeholders in this industry are at each other’s throats again,’’ he said.
This story was originally published December 1, 2022 at 5:48 PM.
