CHICAGO – There will be no spring Thoroughbred race meet in Chicago in 2020 as the Illinois racing circuit continues to sort out the ramifications of recently passed expanded gambling legislation that will permit racetracks to operate casinos. Applications for 2020 racing dates were due to be filed with the Illinois Racing Board by Wednesday and notably absent from this year’s application was a spring Thoroughbred meeting at Hawthorne. Track president Tim Carey said Hawthorne didn’t apply for spring dates because it expects to be constructing a casino in part of its grandstand. “There will be cranes outside and there’s no way the Thoroughbred can train while we’re doing this work,” Carey said. Hawthorne applied for a summer harness meeting that it can conduct during construction, Carey said, because the races will take place at night, when no work is ongoing. A bill expanding legal gambling in Illinois became law in June and finally, after more than a decade of waiting, allows racetracks to operate casinos that will help boost flagging purses in the state. Hawthorne and Fairmount Park in downstate Illinois immediately welcomed the chance to operate a casino but the state’s flagship track, Arlington, has yet to announce any plans. Arlington’s parent company is Churchill Downs. Inc., which already has a majority stake in Rivers Casino, which sits about 13 miles from Arlington. Rivers already is the largest casino in the state and on a conference call Thursday, CDI chief executive officer Bill Carstanjen said Rivers would seek the maximum 800 additional gambling positions made available to it through the recent legislation. Regarding Arlington, Carstanjen said on the call that CDI was “not prepared to announce our full scope of plans there.” Applications for casino licenses are due with the Illinois Gaming Board on Aug. 27. Both Hawthorne and Arlington plan to pursue sports betting but that avenue won’t supply any money for horseracing purses. The Gaming Board has yet to put forth rules governing sports betting but could begin offering guidance at a meeting scheduled for Aug. 8. Arlington’s 2020 dates application asked for 68 racing days spanning their typical season, early May through the end of September. Arlington was awarded a 71-day meeting through the same period in 2019. Fairmount Park applied for 150 racing programs but will work with the IRB to establish the specifics of a much shorter 2020 schedule when dates are awarded later this summer. Carey, meanwhile, said Hawthorne has retained a contractor for the grandstand renovation that will house the casino but work on that project won’t begin until Hawthorne receives a license from the Gaming Board. Licenses will be issued within 120 days of the application deadline later this month. Carey said he considers Hawthorne’s licensure “a formality” and said there “were not going to by any problems” securing financing for the construction project or the hefty up-front fees for gambling positions.