ST. CROIX — VIGL Operations LLC, owner of the Caravelle Hotel & Casino, is considering alternative venues to resume its offtrack betting operations following last month’s closure of X the Spot, a restaurant and lounge in Estate St. John that offered the OTB simulcast.
The company is now considering resuming its OTB operations since X the Spot is no longer in business.
“There are several options we are looking at,” Jason Williams, VIGL general manager of Racing Operations, said.
After it identifies a location, Williams said VIGL would reach out to the St. Croix Horse Racing Commission for approval.
Dodson James, St. Croix HRC chair, said the approval process for VIGL to offer offtrack betting at a new venue would begin with the company making a request.
“Since the government has an agreement with VIGL, their process is to simply send us a letter requesting approval and authorization to conduct simulcasting at a particular location, and we will review it,” he said.
James said the Horse Racing Commission would inspect the site to determine if it would be suitable for offtrack betting while accommodating the customers.
“It’s not just about simulcasting,” he said. “The customer has to come first.”
James said the Horse Racing Commission has already authorized VIGL to run OTB operations at its casino location in the Caravelle Hotel.
“They’ve been given approval some years back, and we still think that’s a good location,” he said. “After all, that’s the so-called mothership of their operation.”
Despite the authorization, Williams said VIGL will not resume offtrack betting at its casino.
In addition to running the casino at the downtown Christiansted hotel, VIGL holds a franchise agreement with the Virgin Islands government to reconstruct the Randall “Doc” James Racetrack. The government, however, is suing VIGL for breach of contract.
As VIGL considers its offtrack betting options, Williams was not able to provide a timeline of when the company would resume the OTB simulcast.
“We are moving as quickly as we can,” he said.
