Churchill Downs Owner Places $180M Bet On New Southern NH Casino
A Louisville, Kentucky-based investor reached a deal to buy the majority stake in a newly opened casino in Southern New Hampshire.
Churchill Downs Inc., owner of the famous race track that hosts the Kentucky Derby, entered into an agreement to acquire 90% ownership in the Live Casino in Salem, the company announced Monday. A securities filing shows it paid $180M for the stake.
CDI purchased a 51% stake from The Cordish Cos., operator of the nationwide Live Casino brand. And it bought a 39% stake from F&L Gaming, an entity owned by local developers Sal Lupoli and Joe Faro.
Lupoli and Faro will maintain a 10% ownership of the casino.
The deal comes after the casino opened its doors last week in a former department store space at The Mall at Rockingham Park, roughly 30 miles north of Boston.
The first phase of the casino includes 100 horse racing machines and 13 live table games. CDI plans to move forward with construction on future phases of the project, which include expansion and rebranding.
CDI previously operated the casino's Chasers Poker Room and will continue to do so under the new ownership agreement.
“New Hampshire is an exciting opportunity, and this transaction – and our new partnership with Joe Faro and Sal Lupoli – allows us to develop a regional destination to draw patrons to Salem from across the growing New England market,” CDI CEO Bill Carstanjen said in a statement.
Simon Property Group owns the mall and signed off on the development as a way to fill the 159K SF that was left behind by Lord & Taylor in 2021. Live Casino signed a 20-year lease, bumping occupancy to 86%.
Before the lease, Simon was facing potential issues as a 2026 maturity approaches on its $262M loan. The mall owner obtained the loan from Barclays Bank and Société Générale for a 541K SF portion of the 1M SF mall.
Joe Faro and developer Sal Lupoli developed the casino at an estimated cost of $160M. The duo partnered with Maryland-based The Cordish Cos., which owns several casinos in cities such as Philadelphia, Atlanta, St. Louis and Kansas City, Missouri.
Next to the mall, Faro owns the 3.8M SF Tuscan Village project, which spans over 170 acres at the former Rockingham Park Race Track. Lupoli is the founder of Lupoli Cos. — one of the region's largest commercial development firms — as well as Sal's Pizza.
CDI, best known for its Churchill Downs track, owns 17 historical and live horse racing properties in New Hampshire, Kentucky and Virginia, according to its website. The company also owns 12 casinos in 12 states.
