NYRA Gets 7th Extension

Perhaps lucky number seven will work for NYRA, which got yet another temporary franchise extension Tuesday.

Its current extension expires on Thursday, but complicated legal issues have kept the Racing Association from emerging from bankruptcy.

The state non-profit Racing Association Board voted late Tuesday morning to give NYRA its seventh temporary extension. The latest extension is good through September 28th.

NYRA was awarded a new 25-year franchise contract back in February, but unpaid loans and the absence of an Aqueduct gaming operator have prevented it from becoming officials.

Once NYRA gets out of bankruptcy, the state is set to assume ownership of the tracks it runs -- Saratoga, Belmont and Aqueduct -- and then lease them back to NYRA.