The Connecticut Airport Authority won’t talk about details of its proposal for a third satellite casino near Hartford. It claims its documents are exempt from the state’s Freedom of Information Act because it is in the midst of negotiations with the state’s two gaming tribes, which are vetting proposals for the third casino. It has gone into closed session four times since it first submitted its proposal in November.
The tribes are in the midst of deciding where to locate a $300 million casino whose purpose is to keep casinos in Massachusetts from draining away a large portion of their gaming profits.
The Airport Authority has submitted one of the two proposals for Windsor Locks, for the Bradley International Airport. The other proposal is from Sportech Ventures for a casino at the Winners pari-mutuel facility.
East Windsor was eliminated from the running in February. Kevin Brown, chairman of the Mohegans, said the site was “extremely challenging” and Pequot Chairman Rodney Butler said it wasn’t a good fit.
MGM, which is building a casino in Springfield, and has challenged the tribes’ efforts to build a third casino, has filed a discovery request to get the Authority’s records, also denied. It has filed a complaint with the state’s Freedom of Information Commission to get the documents.
MGM is in the midst of a federal lawsuit with the state of Connecticut challenging the law approved last summer that gives the Mohegan and Pequot tribes the right to identify a location for a third tribal casino. The legislature retains the right to actually approve of a casino for that site.
The airport authority, created by the legislature in 2011 to oversee the state’s six state-owned airports, has a budget of about $3.2 million.
FOI Commission Chairman Thomas Hennick, said last week that the commission may need to determine whether the authority is covered by Freedom of Information laws. This is the first such complaint made against the authority since it was created.
Although the Airport Authority has had a proposal for a casino near the Bradley Airport on its agenda several times, it has not yet voted on it. At last week’s meeting the board discussed a negotiating strategy for the proposal during closed session—but took no action in open session.
What is known about the Authority’s proposal is that it would build a casino either as part of a new transportation center or at the site of the old Murphy Terminal. An interim casino at the airport’s Sheraton Hotel has also been discussed.
The erstwhile rivals, who operate Foxwoods and the Mohegan Sun, joined forces last year to push a jointly owned casino that would blunt the effects of the MGM International $950 million casino in Springfield, due to open late in 2018.
In a separate by related development, Robert Hayward, 52, has been named as liaison of the Mashantucket Pequot Tribal Nation to local and state officials and lawmakers. His official title is “state government affairs manager,” operating a department that combines public and legislative affairs.
Hayward’s brother, Skip Hayward, unified tribal members to create Foxwoods Resort Casino 30 years ago. Robert Hayward, a lifelong tribal resident, was a member of the team that built that casino. He wielded a chainsaw that helped clear the land for the tribe’s first bingo hall in the 1980s. He also worked to create the tribe’s first gaming commission.
Hayward says that the two tribes’ response to the MGM challenge is his biggest priority going forward.
Another of his tasks will be involvement in negotiations with the state of the tribe’s revenue sharing agreement, which is being revisited due to the third casino.
