Not All is Rosy for W.Va. Tracks

With its Northern Panhandle sisters expanding their casino table game offerings this week, Tri-State Racetrack & Gaming Center has "hit a snag and delayed starting poker games until next year," The Associated Press reports.

"Officials had hoped to begin offering poker games at the first of the year," the article said. "But officials at the Nitro track said there have been problems with getting classes for poker dealers up and running."

Meanwhile, officials at one of the panhandle tracks tell The Intelligencer of Wheeling that an indoor smoking ban "would have as much a negative effect on the track’s bottom line as competition from Pennsylvania slot machines."

As the Kanawha County Health Department expanded its ban on smoking to include all areas of Tri-State last month, "this move has sparked some interest among Ohio County health officials to stop smoking in all areas of Wheeling Island’s track," that newspaper reported.