Connecticut Governor Dannel P. Malloy says he will sign a bill just passed by the legislature that authorizes the state’s two gaming tribes to put out a request for proposal to communities interested in hosting a satellite casino that will help the tribes combat competition from casinos expected to go online soon in Massachusetts and elsewhere.
Previously the governor stated, “What I believe is that the legislature can’t name a winner, that there has to be a process.”
The Mashantucket Pequot and Mohegan tribes, longtime rivals in a casino marketplace that they largely had to themselves for two decades, have now joined forces to stay alive. They are faced by the opening, probably in 2017, of the MGM Springfield, just across the border in Massachusetts. The Plainville racino will open in a couple of weeks as a slots-only facility.
The tribal chairmen issued a joint statement that said, “Competition from gaming in New York and Massachusetts will impact our state, and we appreciate the support from our government partners.” They said their tribes would be developing an RFP in the next few weeks. They added, “At the same time, we will continue to work with the Attorney General’s office to ensure that both the state and the Tribes are protected throughout this process.”
The attorney general recently expressed some fears that a law that simply authorized satellite casinos run by the tribes would conflict with the existing state tribal gaming compacts that pay the state 25 percent of tribal gaming revenue from the Mohegan Sun and Foxwoods Resort casinos.
The law that Malloy plans to sign won’t authorize another casino, just a process for siting one. The legislature would still need to amend state law to allow casino gaming. The Bureau of Indian Affairs would also need to pass on the proposed casino.
Support for the bill is thin among the general populace; a fact alluded to by Senator John Kissel, who voted against it. He told the State, “The people in north-central Connecticut who I represent simply don’t want this.”
Also bearing on remaining profitable in an increasingly competitive gaming market are the actions that the Connecticut gaming tribes are taking to diversify their entertainment offerings.
Touted as “high rollers meets high fashion,” May 21 the Mashantucket Pequot Tribal Nation and Foxwoods Casinos opened a Tanger Outlets, an action that Pequot Chairman Rodney Butler hailed the $15 million project as “that first major step to go beyond gaming.”
The tribe has been working on moving the tribe into outlet shopping for six years and actually building it for 18 months. The tribe hired Sheldon Gordon of the Gordon Group to create a bridge to link Grand Pequot Tower and Fox Tower Casinos. He came up with the concept of populating that bridge with 85 outlet stores carrying high-end brands.
The bridge makes the 300,000 square foot Tanger outlets accessible only be going through one of the two casinos. Stores include Lucky Brand, Ann Taylor and the discount H&M store. It is the first Tanger Outlet to be indoors and the first to be attached to a casino.
Players will be able to earn points on the casino floor and redeem them in the outlet stores.
The celebration included a ribbon cutting, TV’s “The Property Brothers” and other local celebrities and VIPs. Nike Walenda of the “Flying Walendas” wowed visitors by walking across an 800-foot long tightrope stretched between one of the towers and the outlet 80 feet above the ground.
Annette DuBois, vice president of retail development for Foxwoods, noted that one purpose of the outlet was to make Foxwoods into a hotel and resort destination magnet for the entire region.
Butler credited DuBois with having, “changed the landscape of retail at Foxwoods. You are very special.”
In a related development it is still not certain that the legislature will legalize keno even though its two-year budget includes $43.6 million from the game.
It remains for the state and the two tribes to agree on a revenue sharing plan. Language in the budget requires the tribe’s approval on the agreement.
In previous negotiations of the issue the tribes each agreed to 12.5 percent of keno revenues without allowing the game to be played within their two casinos. Currently no specific percentage is being discussed.
The state lottery has said it would like to introduce keno next January. The lottery has 2,800 lottery vendors through the state. If keno is added to the mix, up to 600 restaurants and bars would be able to deploy the machines.
