Data shows Roseshire generated $5.6M in HHR revenue during first several days

The Roseshire Gaming Parlor in Henrico’s Near West End, which opened to the public Sept. 29 despite numerous efforts by county and state officials to prevent it from doing so, generated more than $5.6 million in wagers on its 175 historical horse racing machines during its first few days in business, according to data from the Virginia Racing Commission.

The HHR machines offer users the chance to wager small amounts on the final seconds of previous actual horse races, in a slot-machine-like format.

The facility generated a total of $5,610,247 in September through its HHR machines and paid out just more than $5 million in winnings to patrons, the data showed. (Though it officially opened on the 29th, Roseshire also hosted two days of “sneak peek” events Sept. 27 and 28.)

The VRC data showed that Roseshire’s net “takeout” (money removed from the pool of wagered funds and earmarked to pay expenses, taxes and other industry fees) totaled $430,473 for its first few days.

Churchill Downs, Inc. owns the Colonial Downs horse racing track in New Kent, as well as Roseshire, The Rose Prince William and five Rosie’s-themed wagering facilities throughout Virginia; combined, those eight locations generated more than $510 million in HHR revenue in September and paid out more than $455.2 million in winnings to patrons. The Rosie’s location in Richmond generated the most HHR revenue in September – a total of $144.3 million, across its 1,172 HHR machines.

In total, the eight facilities operate 4,843 HHR machines, which produced a net takeout in September of about $38.1 million.

Despite being open only a handful of days in September, Roseshire generated more than $2.3 million more in HHR-related revenue during the month than did the Rosie’s at Collinsville (in southern Virginia near Martinsville).

Roseshire opened two weeks after earning a license to do so from the VRC. But it is unable to serve alcohol because it has not yet earned either of the two Virginia ABC licenses it is seeking.

During an Oct. 14 hearing, several county officials and residents urged the ABC board not to issue those licenses, citing concerns about the impact that granting them could have on the surrounding neighborhoods. ABC officials combined the complaints they heard during the hearing into three general categories of concern:

• that Roseshire’s operation with ABC licenses would “adversely affect or interfere with the normal orderly conduct of the affairs of such institution”;

• that granting the licenses to Roseshire would “adversely affect real property values or substantially interfere with the usual quietude and tranquility of such (residence or residential area)”;

• that granting the licenses would result in “violations of the VA ABC Act, the laws of the Commonwealth, or local ordinances relating to peace and good order.”

County officials opposed Roseshire location

Henrico officials have been opposed to the Roseshire location since Churchill Downs officials began seriously considering it several years ago. Officials contend the company violated the spirit of a pending change to the county’s code last June by filing their plans for the facility just days before that change took effect.

County officials had moved to close a loophole in their code – and require a public hearing process for any business proposing to implement HHR machines – upon learning that the company was considering the Staples Mill shopping center location, but the process of doing so took several months, and Churchill Downs filed its plans before supervisors voted to amend the code.

By filing those plans under existing Henrico County Code language (which permitted as many as 175 historical horse racing machines to be added by right in a business located on property zoned for B-2 business district usage), Churchill Downs avoided the potential of facing a public hearing.

Company officials have said they simply followed existing law, and though county officials didn't disagree, they viewed the company’s move calculated and unethical. Brookland District Supervisor Dan Schmitt told the Citizen earlier this year that Colonial Downs’ previous owner (Peninsula Pacific Entertainment) had floated the idea of a gaming facility at the Staples Mill site but backed off when county officials told them it was not the right spot.

But Churchill Downs officials told Schmitt and others in the county that they were not bound by previous verbal agreements, he said.

The Staples Mill shopping center site is within a mile of more than 2,700 apartment units and a number of single-family homes, which County Manager John Vithoulkas told the Virginia Racing Commission in February make it a less-than-desirable location for such a facility.

“Henrico has never said no to a Rosie’s,” Vithoulkas told the VRC during its Feb. 14 meeting. “It was always that we wanted input on location."