Casino handouts to local communities are becoming a hot issue in the competition between Mohegan Sun and Wynn Resorts for the Greater Boston casino license. Mohegan Sun is promising to hand out a lot more money to the 13 communities surrounding its proposed Revere casino than Wynn Resorts is offering the nine municipalities around its […]
Gambling
Posted inGambling, The Download
Should New York’s casino worries be ours, too?
A Northeast Democratic governor determined to boost state revenue and job growth goes all-in on a push for four new gambling facilities. Nearby states are eating his state’s lunch when it comes to gambling revenue, and it’s time to do something about it. But just as the casino venture gets going, doubts are raised about […]
Posted inGambling
Earnings calls differ for Wynn, Mohegan Sun
The two companies competing for the Greater Boston casino license reported their quarterly financial numbers on Tuesday, and the tone of their conference calls with analysts was very different. Wynn Resorts, which wants to build a casino in Everett, was very upbeat. The company reported gains in net revenue (up 6 percent to $1.4 billion) […]
Posted inGambling, Opinion
Connecticut’s casino boom going bust
Massachusetts officials repeatedly cited the spectacular success of Connecticut’s two casinos, Foxwoods and Mohegan Sun, when making the case for legalizing casinos in the Bay State. With a casino repeal measure on the November Massachusetts ballot, it’s worth taking a look at how Connecticut’s casino story has been playing out. Opened in the early and […]
Posted inGambling
The Popeye factor
Casinos are supposed to be hurting financially, but maybe Wynn Resorts didn’t get the memo. The Wynn Las Vegas announced this week it has purchased a 2,000-pound sculpture of Popeye for $28.2 million and put it on display for guests to enjoy. The spinach-eating sailor sculpture by New York City artist Jeff Koons joins a […]
Posted inGambling, State House News Service, The Download
A Massachusetts billionaire could torpedo Atlantic City once and for all
Why paddle around with the little fish when you can swim with the big ones? That seems to be the calculation made by venture capitalist Paul Fireman, the founder and former CEO of Reebok. While Las Vegas and Connecticut casino developers duke it out over the greater Boston casino and the statewide repeal fight, the […]
Posted inGambling, The Download
Two takes on Boston casino deal
Marty Walsh blinked. Or maybe he scored big. How you view the news of an impending casino mitigation deal between Boston and Mohegan Sun depends on which account you read this morning. The Globe reports that Walsh has agreed to a pact with Mohegan over its proposed Revere casino that will provide some money to Boston […]
Posted inGambling, The Download
Casino support rebounds
All the recent polls have been indicating support for casinos in Massachusetts is slipping, but a new Boston Globe survey indicates voters would back the state gaming law by an 11-point margin if it came up for a vote in November. The poll indicates 52 percent of those surveyed would vote to keep the law […]
Posted inGambling
Spinning the casino poll numbers
The latest poll on casino gambling in Massachusetts brings troubling news for the casino industry, while it’s sure to lift the spirits of opponents hoping to keep casinos out of the Bay State. A Suffolk University/Boston Herald poll, released Monday, found that 47 percent of voters oppose plans to bring casinos to the state, while […]
Posted inGambling, Opinion
No Eastie’s letter to Cunha, Galvin
I am writing as pro bono counsel for No Eastie Casino, a group of concerned citizens organized to oppose casino development in the Greater Boston region formerly registered as a municipal ballot question committee. This letter and all attached supporting documentation are filed in support of a formal request that the Inspector General’s office investigate […]