Simulcasting to return to Rosecroft Raceway on Thursday

After being closed for more than a year, Rosecroft Raceway in Oxon Hill will reopen for simulcasting on Thursday.

The harness racing facility will start showing races from tracks across the country starting at 12:30 p.m., while live harness racing will resume Oct. 21, according to Penn National Gaming Inc. A subsidiary of the Wyomissing, Pa.-based gaming company, Prince George’s Racing Ventures LLC, purchased the race track at auction for $11 million in February.

Rosecroft will be open seven days a week from noon until midnight, and admission will be free. The first 250 visitors on Thursday will get a $2 betting voucher.

“We are truly excited to bring this entertainment option back to the racing fans of the Washington, D.C., metro area,” Chris McErlean, vice president of racing for the company, said in a statement Monday. “The reopening of Rosecroft is just the start in bringing jobs and economic activity back to Prince George’s County.”

Penn National officials have said that the company will hire back about 20 employees at Rosecroft, and that could increase to about 50 in the fall.

The company said it has spent $1 million on renovations since February. The track will host 20 days of live racing this year and 54 days of live racing in 2012.