If there is any place that jai-alai could have survived, it
was at Bridgeport. Even there, the handle and attendance was declining,
but it was still doing ok when it closed in 1995. Unlike Hartford
and Milford, Bridgeport did not close its doors and walked away,
it closed its door in favoring of opening a greyhound park on
the same site. This was a disasterous decision. Whoever thought
greyhounds would be more popular than jai-alai was sadly mistaken.
IF a fronton was still standing, I would think that someone could
make an attempt to open.
Unfortunately, a new fronton would cost tens of millions of dollars
to build, and a potential owner can't expect to get a return on
that kind of investment to warrant it. So, I think it would never
happen, unless there was a change in the law and a potential owner
could expect to get slots and/or table games.
