Although Connecticut’s two gaming tribes have been conducting a process to identify the site for a third, satellite casino in the state, the issue of whether that would actual be legal remains unsettled—especially in the minds of some skeptical lawmakers.
The Mohegan and Pequot tribes, who have formed a consortium called MMCT, want to build a $300 million casino near the border with Massachusetts, to blunt the effects of the $950 million MGM Springfield that is rising 14 miles across the border, and which is scheduled to open in the latter part of 2018.
At issue is whether the tribes can build and operate a tribal casino outside of their two reservations. MGM Resorts International, which has challenged the whole process in federal court, has unleashed an army of lobbyists to try to persuade enough lawmakers to kill the idea.
One senator, Timothy D. Larson, who co-chairs the legislature’s Public Safety and Security Committee, announced himself to be neutral. “I frankly have no position on where it should end up,” said Larson, who represents the Hartford area where most of the discussion about a third casino is centered.
He said, “The reason why we’re doing this is for jobs. They’re going to build a $300 million facility without any state aid and we’re going to reap the benefits of it whether it’s on one side of the Connecticut River or the other. I’m not worried about which town it goes into. We’ve got to worry about jobs for the state.”
Senator Tony Guglielmo is opposed. He told CalvinAyre: “It’s not a good way to rebuild our economy, to rely on gambling. I’m not inclined to go recklessly cutting things off without discussion. I’d like to see what everybody has to say. I think that’s kind of a tradition of our committee. We’ll certainly be open to discussing it.”
Guglielmo is also concerned about the constitutionality of the 2015 law that granted the tribes the exclusive rights to develop the casino. This is the same constitutional point that MGM is basing its legal challenge on.
The co-chairmen of his committee, Rep. Joseph Verrengia, feels the same way.
Both recall a warning to that effect from Attorney General George Jepsen that he issued as a memo in April 2015. He addressed the issues of the possible threat to the existing tribal state compact with the tribes and the potential trouble if another tribe gains federal recognition.
“Those are two very important questions that I need to have answered before I can take a stand one way or the other,” Verrengia told CalvinAyre. “Those issues should be resolved before a third site is even considered. Those underlying issues haven’t gone away.”
Of course, the state has a vested interest in helping the gaming tribes to save revenues and jobs. They each pay 25 percent of their slots revenue to the state.
So far Governor Dannel Malloy has remained neutral on the legislation. “That’s a legislative process,” he said. “The tribal nations have done a nice job of keeping me informed of where they are and the like and this has got a ways to go.”
The tribes have narrowed down candidates for the third casino to two towns. One of them is the Showcase Cinemas property in East Windsor. At one time, they were considering combining that property with an abandoned Wal-Mart property, however East Windsor First Selectman Robert Maynard said last week that MMCT is only looking at the Showcase property. One major advantage of the property is that it is close to Interstate 91.
The other finalist is Windsor Locks.
MMCT plans to hold a public meeting on January 24 at a local middle school, and talk directly to the people who will be voting on whether to host a casino.
Mohegan Tribal Chairman Kevin Brown told the Hartford Courant, “We’re not coming to this meeting with fancy renderings or a signed agreement” He added, “We want to be good neighbors, and a huge part of that is engaging local residents to hear their concerns and answer their questions.”
Maynard is talking up his town’s “rural charm.” He likes the idea of the more than 2,000 local jobs that would be generated by the proposed casino. “I haven’t seen anybody really opposed to it at all,” he said.
Brown says he is hearing good things from town residents about the positives that could come from a casino. He told the Courant: “We feel some momentum of folks recognizing that this is what comes: tax dollars, jobs, local municipal improvements to services and capacity.” He added, “Those are all of the good things that come and we think those two communities see that as a way ahead.”
However, Windsor Locks Board of Finance Chairman Paul Harrington is skeptical about the benefits the casino will bestow on his town. “The desire to rebuild our town should not be at the expense of our quality of life,” he told Hartford Business Journal “The desire to rebuild our town should not be at the expense of our quality of life.”
He believes the process has been lacking transparency.
But Windsor Locks First Selectman Christopher Kervick, disagrees. He likes the idea of a casino and would like to use the extra revenue to build a new police station, renovate fire facilities and upgrade the town’s school buildings. He told the Journal, “We look forward to moving ahead with these negotiations to see if we can come up with a financial model that makes sense for the town.” He added that the final decision would rest with the voters.
If the tribes pick the other town, Kervick is anxious to work with them to benefit both communities.
