The Massachusetts Gaming Commission (MGC) has stripped the city of Boston of its ‘surrounding community’ status, effectively eliminating its automatic claim to financial compensation if Wynn Resorts builds a casino on the city’s doorstep. Wynn is one of two companies hoping to build a Boston-area casino, the other being the Mohegan Sun, which has offered to compensate Boston to the tune of $18m per year for 15 years if its Revere casino plan wins the sole Boston-area license up for grabs.
In stark contrast, Wynn had offered Boston $1m up front and $2.6m annually for its Everett casino proposal, plus promises to invest $5m on road improvements and spend at least $15m annually on goods and services with area merchants. Wynn’s lowball offer failed to impress Boston major Martin Walsh (pictured), who had previously criticized Wynn for not ‘stepping up to the table’ with a Mohegan-size goodie bag. Walsh refused to participate in arbitration talks with Wynn, a gambit the MGC warned could lead them to consider Boston to have waived its right to claim ‘surrounding community’ status.
On Thursday, the MGC made good on its threat. Acting Commission Chairman James McHugh – Chairman Stephen Crosby recused himself from the Boston license decision over allegations that he has unfairly favored the Wynn bid – said the MGC’s legal counsel had advised it that Boston’s recalcitrance had left the MGC no choice but to revoke the city’s status claim. Walsh blasted the MGC’s decision, saying it shows “how slanted they are towards this industry and not towards the residents of the city.”
The city hasn’t totally burned its bridges, as the MGC could require Wynn to make certain impact payments to Boston should Wynn win the license. Boston can also resubmit its application for status at some future date and McHugh said Boston would be welcome to participate in future hearings regarding the Wynn casino proposal. A suddenly conciliatory Walsh told reporters he “would take a call from the Wynn folks today.”
The MGC is expected to announce who gets the Boston-area license in early September but it remains to be seen whether the license is worth the paper on which it’s printed. In June, an anti-casino group won a court ruling that will see state voters decide whether to repeal the 2011 law that authorized construction of three casinos and one slots parlor in the state. To date, only Penn National Gaming’s Springfield slots parlor is currently under construction. MGM Resorts has won the western Massachusetts license but has put development plans on hold until after the November vote.
