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Even the owners of Fort Erie in Ontario are now turning away from gambling in a bid to secure its future.

Plans for a hotel and tourist resort have overtaken the battle to secure government state funding, as Jim Thibert explained.

"We are nine miles from Niagra Falls and just over the border from the United States . We could build a place to stay which encourages tourists to come here and still see the horse racing," he said.

"Things are tough with the removal of the slots revenue, but there still is hope that we could get funding to build something different here and keep racing alive."