New England Public Radio

Revere, Mohegan Sun Reach Casino Deal

Plans to build a casino on Suffolk Downs’ property in Revere took another step forward Monday now that developers have worked out a host community agreement with Revere Mayor Dan Rizzo. 

Mayor Dan Rizzo says what he likes best about the deal with Suffolk Downs is the opportunity to put people to work: 

“The notion of creating 4000 permanent jobs is just very exciting to me.  I know sitting on my desk right now are the resumes of 300 – 400 people in desperate need of work.”

The developers, Suffolk Downs and Mohegan Sun, have agreed to pay Revere 33 million dollars up front, plus 40 million in infrastructure improvements, a new athletic field, and a community center.  The developers also promise money for Revere public schools and police and fire departments.  And at least 25 million dollars in annual payments from the casino. The mayor and the city council must now schedule a referendum in mid to late February. If voters approve the plan, it would likely compete with Wynn Resorts for the sole Eastern Massachusetts resort casino license.

Palmer Recount Upholds Vote Against Mohegan Sun Casino

After a recount Tuesday, the vote against a Mohegan Sun casino in Palmer, Massachusetts remains virtually unchanged.

Eight volunteer poll workers sifted through every one of the over 5220 ballots by hand, each overlooked by a pro- and an anti- casino representative. 

18 votes were challenged, and one vote thrown out, leaving the margin nearly the same as before, with Mohegan Sun’s proposal voted down by 94 votes.

On election night, Mohegan Sun called for a recount almost immediately, citing some malfunctioning ballot machines. Michael Eagan is a spokesperson for Quobog  Valley Against Casinos.

“It just goes to show you that the reasons that they [Mohegan Sun] gave for having a recount were greatly exaggerated,” says Eagan, “and the recount process today confirmed that fact. I’m thrilled.”

Town Manager Charlie Blanchard, who supported the casino, says it will be difficult for the town to come together after such a divided vote.

“I hope people will put this behind them. The decision has been made, and we’ll move on to other things,” says Blanchard.

As for Mohegan Sun, they seem to have already moved on from Palmer. The company has said it will look into non-casino development on the land it leased for the proposal. Mohegan is also in talks with Suffolk Downs to operate a casino at the Revere racetrack.

Mohegan Sun Shifts as Palmer, Mass. Readies for Recount

On Tuesday, Palmer, Massachusetts will re-count casino referendum ballots originally cast three weeks ago. A proposed Mohegan Sun gambling resort lost by just 93 votes in the original tally.

Mohegan Sun called for a recount almost immediately after the final vote tally was announced on election night. But the company doesn’t anticipate a radical change in results, and appears to be moving away from Palmer. CEO Mitchell Etess acknowledged in a statement late last week that the town remains “sharply divided” on casino gambling, and he says a recount won’t change that division.

In the same statement, the Connecticut-based casino operator indicated it will look into non-casino development for the 152-acre parcel of land it’s leased in Palmer.

Mohegan Sun is now among several companies in talks with Suffolk Downs to be the casino operator in a renewed proposal in Revere, according to the racetrack’s chief operating officer. 

Palmer election officials will hand count the ballots, a process the town clerk says should take about 4 to 5 hours.

Land Owner: Mohegan Resorts Looks Elsewhere

Mohegan Sun appears to be looking outside of Palmer, Massachusetts  to build a casino .

Attorney Steve Spelman represents Northeast Realty which owns the land  the Palmer casino would be built on. In recent days when Spelman tried to reach the tribe about the rumors, he says he heard nothing.

That changed on Wednesday.  Spelman received a letter from Mohegan requesting that its exclusive commitment to build in Palmer be terminated, while at the same time holding on to the land. Spelman says that would block other developers from building on the site. Spelman says he wrote a letter to Mohegan saying….

“…essentially you can’t do this. And if you have been doing it it’s wrong so stop it. And if you don’t stop it we’re going to take you to court and talk to the gaming commission about it.”

This new twist falls less than a week before a scheduled recount in Palmer. Residents against building a casino won that election earlier this month by 93 votes. Attempts to reach Mohegan Resorts for this story were unsuccessful. 

Palmer Votes Down Casino; Mohegan Sun Looks For a Recount

By 93 votes, residents of Palmer, Massachusetts, rejected a casino deal between the town and Mohegan Sun. But the battle may not be finished.

At a noisy, crowded storefront near Palmer’s downtown, casino opponents celebrated their victory over casino giant Mohegan Sun. Charlotte Burns is the co-president of Quabog Valley Against Casinos. She says she is ready for the town to move on from the issue.

“It’s like a shadow of doom has been hanging over this town ever since Mohegan came to along and now it’s lifted. And now the town can go forward and…be a community,” Burns says.

A few blocks away at a quiet Mohegan Sun headquarters, officials announced they plan to seek a recount. Kevin Conroy is a lawyer for the casino operator. He says Mohegan Sun poll watchers witnessed a malfunctioning ballot box in precinct two .

“The machine was not accepting ballots. We alerted the town officials right away. After that point, we observed town officials taking ballots out of the machine and ballots, some ballots ended up on the floor,” Conroy says.

Just over 60-percent of the more than 8,000 registered voters in Palmer cast a ballot.

Official results of Palmer casino referendum

Palmer Casino Supporters Confident Of Voters’ Approval

With West Springfield out of the running to host western Massachusetts’ sole casino, supporters of Mohegan Sun’s proposal in Palmer say they’re confident voters will ok their plan. Palmer Town Councilor Paul Burns says he was surprised by West Springfield’s rejection of Hard Rock’s casino project on Tuesday, calling it a challenge to his fellow supporters.
“There’s been a presumption that these questions are going to pass in all these communities. So I think it’s important to see than it can fail, and hopefully it will energize supporters to turn out and cast their votes in favor of the project.”
Palmer residents will vote on their community host agreement on November 5th. If it passes, Palmer and Mohegan Sun will compete against Springfield and its agreement with MGM. Burns says his town’s plan would have far greater economic benefits for western Massachusetts than Springfield’s downtown project.
“A Palmer casino creates a whole different model in terms of how economic development is approached in this region. I think it’s a much larger regional footprint. I think it literally will stretch from Worcester to Springfield in terms of the impact.”
Mohegan Sun and Palmer’s town manager have scheduled a total of 5 information sessions this month and next about the host agreement.

Meanwhile, as communities continue deciding whether to expand gambling in their towns, Governor Deval Patrick says he’s satisfied with the pace of the casino referendum process. Patrick says he was initially concerned the pace was going too slow. But he says he believes the framework is being thoughtfully implemented.
“The Gaming Commission I think has wisely taken their time. Because it is probably more important in the long run that they get it right, than that they get it in a hurry”
The Gaming Commission is not expected to decide which western Massachusetts community will host a casino until early next year. Patrick made his comments Tuesday in Worcester.