Cherokees approve purchase of horse racing track in Rogers County

The Cherokee Nation is galloping ahead with more economic ventures Wednesday, announcing the purchase of the old Will Rogers Downs horse-racing track. <br><br>Cherokee Nation Enterprises says it will

Wednesday, March 24th 2004, 12:00 am

By: News On 6

The Cherokee Nation is galloping ahead with more economic ventures Wednesday, announcing the purchase of the old Will Rogers Downs horse-racing track.

Cherokee Nation Enterprises says it will spend $2-million to re-open and upgrade the track. They plan to build a fine-dining restaurant and put in a casino. A compact that passed in the state legislature this year allows racetracks to have electronic gaming machines.
The Cherokees expect the combination of horse-racing and gaming to be a popular one and say the region is on the fast track. David Stewart, Cherokee Nation Enterprises CEO: "It's a great facility and Claremore, from an economic standpoint is actually growing at a very fast rate as compared with other areas."

The Cherokee Nation hopes to have the track up and running this year. They expect the venture will create about 100 jobs.