FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
MTR GAMING GROUP OPENS NEW 258-ROOM HOTEL AT ITS
Mountaineer Casino Racetrack and Resort
CHESTER, WV - May 1, 2002 - MTR Gaming Group, Inc. (Nasdaq
National Market:MNTG) today announced the opening of a new
hotel at its Mountaineer Casino Racetrack and Resort.
The upscale, five-story hotel adds 258 rooms, including 20
suites and two presidential suites, to Mountaineer's existing
101-room capacity. It will enable Mountaineer to host various
conventions and conferences at its new convention center, and
will also provide lodging for visitors who were previously
limited to a day trip due to a sold-out hotel.
"The addition of this capacity greatly enhances our ability
to increase our customer base," said Edson R. (Ted) Arneault,
President & CEO of MTR Gaming Group. "Our Group Sales
Department has already booked a number of corporate/association/educational
conferences in anticipation of the hotel opening. Meeting planners
have responded enthusiastically to our 52,750-square foot convention
and conference facility, diverse entertainment venues and amenities
and proximity to a major airport.
"Our market radius has traditionally been 150 miles,
or a day trip. With the addition of the new hotel, we will
try to stretch that market radius to 300 miles as more customers
can opt to stay overnight or spend a few days."
The 219,000-square foot hotel brings the grandeur of the 1920s
to Mountaineer's complex with the three-story atrium lobby
reflecting the ambiance of the era. The elegant Mahogany Room
piano bar offers a quiet retreat overlooking the adjacent brick
courtyard. The hotel is state-of-the-art, and offers indoor
swimming pools for children and adults with whirlpool and men's
and women's dressing rooms.
The hotel complex will include a 60-seat gourmet steakhouse,
retail shopping area and coffee shop, which should open later
this month. Mountaineer's Spa, which will relocate to the hotel
this summer, will be set in a two-story area adjacent to the
lobby and courtyard.
The hotel complex will create 250 new jobs, increasing direct
employment at Mountaineer to over 1,700, with over 3,500 licensed
backside workers (jockeys,horsemen, trainers, etc.) deriving
their income from Mountaineer.
About MTR Gaming Group
MTR Gaming Group owns and operates the Mountaineer Casino Racetrack and Resort in Chester, West Virginia, which currently encompasses
a thoroughbred racetrack with off-track betting and export
simulcasting, 3,200 slot machines, 359 hotel rooms, golf course,
spa & fitness center, theater and events center, convention
center and fine dining and entertainment. The Company also
owns and operates the Ramada Inn and Speedway Casino in North
Las Vegas, and holds a license to build a new thoroughbred
racetrack with parimutuel wagering in Erie, Pennsylvania. MTR
is included on the Russell 2000® and Russell® 3000
Indexes. For more information, please visit www.mtrgaming.com. About Scioto Downs
Scioto Downs owns and operates a harness horse racing facility in Columbus,
OH. Major racing programs conducted at Scioto’s facilities include
the Little Brown Jug Preview, the Scarlet O’Hara, the Pink Bonnet,
the Ohio Sires Stakes events and Ohio Fair stakes events.
Except for historical information, this
press release contains forward-looking statements concerning,
among other things, the acquisition of Scioto Downs, Inc.
Such statements are based on MTR’s current plans and
expectations. Such statements are subject to a number of
risks and uncertainties that could cause the statements made
to be incorrect and/or for actual results to differ materially.
Those risks and uncertainties are described in the Company’s
periodic reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission,
and with respect to the Scioto Downs acquisition are described
in the Merger Agreement, as amended, which is attached as
exhibits to the Company’s reports on Forms 8-K filed
December 24, 2002, March 5, 2003, and May 7, 2003. MTR’s
plans to build a racetrack in Erie, Pennsylvania remain subject
to the possibility of a legal challenge to the July 17, 2003
decision of the Pennsylvania State Horse Racing Commission
reinstating the license (which was originally granted in
late 2002) and the risks associated with land acquisition,development,
construction and integration of new operations. The Company
does not intend to update publicly any forward-looking statements,
except as may be required by law. |
