Henrico brings its fight against controversial new Rosie’s to court
VENN
HENRICO COUNTY, Va. (WRIC) -- Henrico leaders have taken the fight to shut down the newly-opened Rosie's in the county's West End to court, claiming that it should never have been granted a license to operate in the first place.
On Monday, Sept. 29, a brand new Roseshire Gaming Parlor, or Rosie's, opened within Henrico County's Staples Mill Shopping Center. It features 175 horse racing machines -- the maximum it is allowed by right.
Though lines formed out its door on opening day, this gaming and entertainment venue has been highly controversial since its inception, with pushback coming from Henrico residents, local leaders and even state lawmakers.
The heart of said controversy is public input, which this Rosie's was able to open without. Churchill Downs, Inc., the parent company behind Rosie's, filed a building permit for the venue in June 2024 -- just days before Henrico leaders changed county rules to require public input on such developments.
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Ultimately, the campaign for a public vote failed when Gov. Glenn Youngkin (R) vetoed a budget amendment that would have mandated one -- meaning Churchill Downs was able to proceed with licensing and opening this new Rosie's.
Opposing lawmakers like Sen. Schuyler VanValkenburg (D-Henrico) previously told 8News that the fight was not over -- and court documents Henrico officials shared with 8News show that, months later, said fight has been taken to the Richmond City Circuit Court.
On Tuesday, Nov. 12, Henrico County filed a petition for appeal against the Virginia Racing Commission, the state agency responsible for licensing and regulating gaming facilities like Rosie's. Within the appeal, Henrico leaders ask the court to review the commission's decision to grant Churchill Downs its license to operate the new Rosie's.
"Henrico is appealing the flawed decision to allow the Roseshire wagering facility in our community because the voices of our residents were intentionally and wrongly silenced as part of the review process," said Henrico's county manager, John A. Vithoulkas, in a statement regarding the appeal.
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A central part of the county's legal argument is that, when the Virginia Racing Commission chose to award Churchill Downs its license to operate this Rosie's, it "improperly" relied on a decision voters made more than three decades ago.
On Nov. 3, 1992, the majority of Henrico voters voted "yes" when asked if they wanted to allow "pari-mutuel wagering" -- or a system for wagering on horse races -- within the county.
Within its appeal, Henrico describes this 33-year-old referendum as "outdated and irrelevant," as voters made this decision years before the General Assembly "fundamentally changed the nature" of how pari-mutuel wagering works in Virginia in 2018. It did so, in part, by allowing said wagering to be done using electronic terminals -- which had "not yet been invented" at the time of the 1992 vote.
"Because this facility operates with terminals akin to slot machines, it is fundamentally and legally different from what was envisioned nearly a quarter century ago when Henrico voters approved a referendum allowing only off-track betting on horse races," Vithoulkas said.
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According to the appeal, in 2019, Churchill Downs told Henrico leaders that it may relocate an existing satellite facility to Henrico, but that it would ask for the county's approval before choosing a location. However, Henrico asserts that this did not happen, with Churchill Downs instead filing a permit five days before the new ordinance went into effect and beginning to build the new Rosie's.
Henrico leaders claim they "expressed concerns" to Churchill Downs about the location choice, saying that placing such a facility so close to residential neighborhoods could be "detrimental to the health, safety and welfare of Henrico residents."
"Ignoring the county and its residents' complaints about a lack of transparency and broken promises, [Churchill Downs] initiated a new strategy to develop Roseshire on its own terms, which included operation of a staggering [175] [horse racing machines], while facing the least possible volume of public input or scrutiny," the appeal reads.
In his statement, Vithoulkas accuses Churchill Downs of not caring about the concerns of Henrico's residents or their elected officials.
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"They [Churchill Downs] chose a cynical path that shows they're not interested in being a good neighbor or a valued corporate citizen," he said.
Henrico claims within the appeal that, when the Virginia Racing Commission held a public hearing regarding licensing the Rosie's, residents came out "en masse" against it being awarded. They cited their concerns about the facility's location and objected to the reliance on the 1992 referendum.
The commission proceeded to unanimously approve licensing the new Rosie's, saying that the facility was indeed valid under current law -- which Henrico asserts is not true.
"The commission's decision is contrary to governing law because aggrieved local residents have been completely denied any meaningful voice -- let alone a vote in a valid and unexpired referendum -- to decide the central question relevant to the case decision, ie. whether pari-mutuel wagering on historical horse racing should be permitted in Henrico County," the appeal reads.
For these reasons, Henrico is petitioning the court to rule that the Virginia Racing Commission was wrong to grant Churchill Downs a license to operate the new Rosie's without a referendum being held. They would like said license revoked and for Churchill Downs to accordingly cease operating the horse racing terminals within the new Rosie's.
This is a developing story, stay with 8News for updates.
