New England Public Radio

Slots License Is Officially Penn National’s, At Least For Now

The Massachusetts Gaming Commission made things official Friday, formally offering a slots casino license for the Plainridge Racecourse in Plainville. But there’s still some uncertainty over gambling in the state.

Penn National casino company has a month to pay the $25 million license fee. That’s quite a price tag given a proposed ballot question seeks to roll back Massachusetts’ casino law. If the courts allow it to proceed, and voters sign off, companies like Penn National may be left with expensive – but useless – licenses.

Gaming Commission chair Steve Crosby says he’s talked to lawmakers about this possibility, “saying that we think it would be reasonable to have some mechanism for paying that back in the event that there were a repeal, but that’s not really within our control.”

Penn National’s Tim Wilmott says the company’s not slowing down. He says construction on the slots parlor will start Monday.

“If there is a ballot question in November, we’re going to fight for the right outcome,” Wilmott says. “We have a lot of experience in political battles with gaming in other parts of the United States and we feel confident we’re going to get the right outcome.”

The Plainville proposal beat out competing slots parlor bids for Leominster and Raynham.

Leominster Supporters React As Plainville Takes Slots Casino License

Gaming Board to award first casino license

A tough loss Thursday for Leominster. A proposed slots casino in the north-central Massachusetts city was narrowly beat out by a proposal in Plainville for the state’s first and only slots license. Two of the five commissioners on the state gaming board supported Leominster’s losing bid, including chair Steve Crosby, who advocated for Leominster just before the vote that put Plainville in position to take the license.

“As we approach the vote, I have a tiny bit of a sick feeling that we’re missing a big opportunity for an important part of the state that could’ve really been something unique, and something special,” said Crosby.

Leominster Mayor Dean Mazzarella was at the hearing. He says he was discouraged and disappointed by the vote, but not disillusioned.

“We’ll regroup,” Mazzarella said. “We have a lot of good land right off the highway exactly where they were going to go, but I was extremely impressed that two of the members fought right to the end. Here we are, they just took the vote, and they were fighting right up to the last minute.”

Penn National, which proposed the slots parlor for Plainville, must still agree to several conditions laid out by the gaming commission. If they accept, the panel will hold a final vote on Friday to officially award the slots license.

 

After Years Of Work And Talk, Mass. Set To Award First Casino License

It was a strong day for Leominster during a hearing before casino regulators. The central Massachusetts city is among three communities vying to host a slots parlor.

Years of legislative debate, regulation writing, negotiations and referendums – and it comes down to this. Within the next two days, the Massachusetts Gaming Commission will award a single license for a slots casino.

Commissioners on Wednesday wrapped up their presentations analyzing the bids. And if that public scoring is to be followed, there are two favorites – Leominster and Plainville, and one clear underdog – Raynham.

The Leominster proposal received a lot of praise from the panel’s chair, Steve Crosby.

“I would expect their [general manager] to be a major player in the north-central Mass. business community and to be a player on the Johnny Appleseed Trail Association, and so forth,” Crosby said. “And help them figure out how to raise this area up. And it’s an area that needs raising up.”

The commission will begin deliberations Thursday and, by Friday, vote for a winner.

This spring, the panel is scheduled to award licenses for two larger, resort-style casinos.

Early Advantage For Plainville During First Day Of Mass. Slots Parlor Hearings

Gambling regulators in Massachusetts have started to publicly score the three bids to open a slots parlor in the state. By the end of the week, one of the applicants is expected to win the license – the first awarded by the Gaming Commission since the legislature passed a casino law.

A proposal from Leominster received praise from the panel for its design and finances. But Commissioner James McHugh raised one red flag.

“The concern does exist that the applicant’s schedule to open the facility by the end of 2014 is overly optimistic,” McHugh said. “And that coordination of the permitting and construction could delay the opening for three to six months.”

A proposal in Plainville scored slightly better than Leominster’s during the first day of evaluations, with a plan for Raynham trailing behind.

Commissioners will continue to present scorecards on a variety of criteria for the next couple days, with a slots parlor license awarded by Friday. Later this spring, the panel is scheduled to award licenses for two larger, resort-style casinos.

New England Public Radio’s Sam Hudzik and Henry Epp contributed to this report.

Mass. Slots Parlor License To Be Awarded This Week

Later this week, the Massachusetts Gaming Commission is expected to announce the location of a slot machine parlor. It will be the first casino license awarded by the board and a central Massachusetts city is in the running.

Cordish Gaming is proposing a $200 million, 26-acre project in Leominster. The company is competing with projects at a former greyhound track in Raynham and a harness racing facility in Plainville. Both of those projects are located in the southeastern part of the state.

Whoever wins the license will have the right to operate up to 1,250 slot machines. In Leominster, Mayor Dean Mazzarella says he thinks the gaming commission should select his city’s project because it will have the largest economic impact of the three proposals.

“In terms of jobs, unemployment rate, what communities would do with their money if they are, in fact, successful, the host agreements, all of those things point toward Leominster,” Mazzarella says.

Meanwhile, voters in Revere head to the polls Tuesday to consider a deal between the city and Mohegan Sun for a resort-casino at the Suffolk Downs Racetrack. That license will be awarded later this year

Big Win for Slots Casino in Leominster

Voters in Leominster have given their approval to a proposed slots parlor in the city.

Baltimore-based Cordish Co. wants to build a $200 million, 125,000-square foot facility with 1,250 slot machines near the intersection of Interstate 190 and state Route 117. The company has pledged $4 million in annual payments to the city.

The plan was backed by about 63 percent of voters in Tuesday’s referendum. Approval was required before Cordish could submit a final application to the state’s gambling commission, which is due Oct. 4.

The state’s 2011 casino law allows for only one slots-only facility in Massachusetts. Leominster will likely be competing for the license with proposals from the Plainridge harness race track in Plainville, and a former dog racing track in Raynham.

This story is from the Associated Press, with information from the Worcester Telegram & Gazette.