Mayor Byron Brown answers questions from reporters about when his resignation will happen.
Former Buffalo Mayor Byron W. Brown's salary will jump to $315,000 as CEO of the Western Regional Off-Track Betting Corp. in his third year at the helm of the organization, according to his three-year employment contract.
Before the start of Brown's first public meeting with WROTB board of directors as their CEO on Wednesday, he provided reporters with the 14-page contract that news organizations had been requesting since Brown was offered the job Sept. 5.
The three-year contract expires Dec. 31, 2027, with a starting annual base salary of $295,000. Beginning Jan. 1, 2026 the WROTB will pay Brown $305,000, contingent upon "continued growth and a satisfactory performance evaluation," the contract says.
And beginning Jan. 1, 2027, he will receive $315,000 under the same terms.
The agreement automatically renews for an additional term of two years.
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Brown resigned Oct. 15 as Buffalo's longest-serving mayor, its first Black mayor and its only mayor to ever win election as a write-in candidate. He started his job at WROTB the following day, overseeing the operation of off-track betting sites, as well as Batavia Downs and its video gaming casino floor, hotel and live horse harness racing.
"It's my understanding ... through FOIL (Freedom of Information Law) the contract would be available on the 31st of October, but I want to voluntarily provide it to anyone that would like to get a copy of it today," Brown said as he attended WROTB board of directors committee meetings in Batavia.
Brown has said he plans to bring to WROTB at least two people who were on his staff at Buffalo City Hall, including former First Deputy Mayor Steven M. Casey, who owned a political consulting firm that was convicted of wire fraud three years ago.
Erie County Executive Mark Poloncarz, a fellow Democrat, criticized the WROTB for hiring Casey.
"I am incredibly disappointed to learn that Western Region OTB has chosen to hire Steve Casey. As someone whose firm, of which he was the sole member, was convicted of wire fraud, Steve has no place managing any public entity, much less a gambling operation," Poloncarz said. "Casey was an incredibly toxic force in Buffalo City Hall for decades, and his presence at Western Region OTB will no doubt only further degrade this already troubled institution."
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Two longtime Brown allies may be headed to WROTB with him
Steven M. Casey, a former first deputy mayor and confidante to former Buffalo Mayor Byron W. Brown, has applied for licenses to work at the Western Regional Off-Track Betting Corp., which Brown now runs. And another longtime Brown aide, Michael J. DeGeorge, could soon be following suit.
"Former Mayor Brown committed to the Board of Directors that he would move Western Region OTB towards transparency and accountability; the hiring of Steve Casey moves Western Region OTB in the complete opposite direction," Poloncarz said in a comment first reported by Investigative Post.
Casey left City Hall and the Brown administration in 2014 to work for a developer.
In 2015, FBI agents executed a search warrant at Casey's East Aurora home. A political consulting company that Casey ran pleaded guilty to the felony in 2021 in U.S. District Court and was sentenced to paying $8,752 in restitution, court fees and a fine.
Casey has applied for a harness general services license and a video gaming key license he needs to work at WROTB, according to Lee Park, spokesman for the New York State Gaming Commission.
Brown's City Hall spokesman, Michael DeGeorge, recently submitted his resignation from his city job, effective Nov. 1. DeGeorge declined to say if he will join Brown at WROTB.
Byron Brown resigns as Buffalo mayor, will start OTB job Wednesday
Byron W. Brown resigned Tuesday as Buffalo's longest-serving mayor, its first Black mayor and its only mayor to ever win election as a write-in candidate.
Brown's contract with WROTB lays out Brown's duties and responsibilities as president and CEO, including "overall direction, development and day-to-day management over gaming operations, the hotel, food and beverage and other gaming related amenities. Brown also is responsible for management of the vendors, consultants and employees with the right to "select, assign and terminate such individuals and entities."
Brown will also have to prepare annual operating and capital budgets, as well as develop and implement training programs for employees.
He will also ensure compliance of operations with the requirements of the New York State Gaming Commission and assist in the development of strategic plans and negotiate employment offers for management on behalf of WROTB.
Brown is entitled to a minimum of two weeks paid vacation per year, under his contract.
WROTB is a public benefit corporation owned and operated by directors appointed by 15 Western New York counties and the cities of Buffalo and Rochester. It employs more than 400 people and owns and operates 8 OTB branches, as well as Batavia Downs Gaming, a standard bred racetrack and a hotel.
By Deidre Williams
News Staff Reporter
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