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Penn Nat’l unit breaks ties with Ohio partner

Penn National Gaming Inc. says that its wholly owned subsidiary working on two Ohio casinos has ended its agreement with Lakes Entertainment Inc.

Penn National Gaming Inc. says that its wholly owned subsidiary working on two Ohio casinos has ended its agreement with Lakes Entertainment Inc.

Both companies said today that, in exchange for a $25 million cash payment, the Minneapolis-based Lakes Entertainment will no longer be a part of the casino projects that Penn Ventures L.L.C. has planned for Columbus and Toledo, Ohio.

The two companies had announced their initial agreement in October 2009, and the terms included Lakes' partly funding Penn National's costs related to passage of the state constitutional amendment to allow casinos in Columbus, Toledo, Cincinnati and Cleveland.

Wyomissing, Pa.-based Penn National, whose racetracks and casino properties include Freehold Raceway in New Jersey, and Penn National Race Course and casino in Grantville, Pa., said in a release that it already had received about $1.9 million under its initial agreement with Lakes Entertainment.

Penn National said it expects to break ground on the Toledo project next month and on the Columbus project next year, with both of them opening in 2012.

Lakes Entertainment, which develops and/or manages tribal as well as non-tribal casinos, is still involved in developing casinos in Cincinnati and Cleveland.    - Roslyn Rudolph