OXFORD — The Gambling Control Board on Tuesday ruled that releasing the names and percentages of Black Bear Development’s owners would not be a violation of trade secrets or of the owners’ privacy.

Black Bear is the group of investors behind the casino under construction on Route 26.

The issue came before the board due to Freedom of Access Act requests for copies of the Casino Operator’s License application, which includes detailed information on the ownership and their percentages.

A lawyer for Black Bear has fought the release of the owners’ information, claiming it violated their privacy and constituted proprietary company information.

The Gambling Board disagreed, ruling the information could be made public. The ownership information hasn’t yet been made public. The board’s decision is effective Nov. 8, giving Black Bear time to take the issue to court.

Black Bear Community Development Director Scott Smith said the company had no comment Tuesday evening.

Investors in Black Bear Entertainment, the group that put the casino on the ballot in 2010, were Rob Lally, co-owner of Mt. Abram Family Resort in Greenwood; Steve Barber, former president and CEO of Barber Foods in Portland; Rupert and Suzanne Grover, owners of Grover Gundrilling in Norway; Jim Boldebook, founder of Creative Broadcast Concepts, an auto ad firm in Biddeford; Bob Bahre of Alton, N.H., former owner of Oxford Plains Speedway and New Hampshire International Speedway in Loudon; and his son and business partner, Gary Bahre, also of Alton, N.H.

Black Bear recently announced it has hired Silverton Casino of Las Vegas, Nev., to hire the executives and operate the Oxford casino, the first in northern New England to feature table games such as blackjack, craps and roulette. The multimillion-dollar gambling facility is scheduled to open in mid-2012.

treaves@sunjournal.com


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