MGM is stepping up its propaganda war against a satellite Indian casino in Connecticut by releasing previously secret documents detailing the plans for a casino at Bradley International Airport in Windsor Locks that the Connecticut Airport Authority (CAA) once considered behind closed doors.
MGM notes that the Authority once crowed that the proposed casino could “capitalize on a captive audience” of the more than 17,000 passengers that traverse the airport daily.
In its November pitch to the two-tribal authority that will decide where to locate the casino, the authority wrote, “No other location within the state of Connecticut can offer the opportunity for that amount of dedicated non-casino traffic to pass by the casino entrances daily.”
“To provide maximum use for all passengers, mini-TSA checkpoints have been incorporated in the casino adjacent to the terminal’s two gate concourses — which have been positioned on the same level as the casino — enabling pre-security departing passengers who have been gaming to enter the concourses with no vertical move,” said the proposal.
The Mashantucket Pequot and Mohegan tribes, once fierce rivals with their Foxwoods Resort and Casino and Mohegan Sun, have joined forces to try to place a satellite casino near the border with Massachusetts, to try to alleviate some of the lost revenue and jobs that will result when MGM opens its $950 million MGM Springfield in 2018. Their joint venture is called MMCT.
As a result of their efforts the legislature adopted Special Act 15-7, which enables the tribes to conduct a process to identify a site for a casino, but does not yet authorize the casino.
The CAA made the proposal to the MMCT, but withdrew it in June after the tribal authority did not make a decision because it was necessary to go forward with the advance planning for the terminal addition.
Kevin A. Dillon, the authority’s executive director, who talked about the process last week, said, “The terminal has the same issue as the transportation center. We had to move forward.”
MGM has been waging an unrelenting campaign in the courts, in the press and in the halls of the Congress and the Connecticut legislature to prevent that from happening.
The Authority’s actions are old news, however, since it abandoned its plans for locating the casino at the $225 million transportation center back in June. The Authority has not abandoned its hopes for a casino somewhere on Authority property. Those alternates won’t offer the same amount of foot traffic, but it is still a good location and easily accessible from nearby highways, according to the Authority. That includes property along Route 75 and land adjacent to an off-track betting parlor,
The Authority has resisted efforts for it to conduct its deliberations about an airport casino in the public eye—noting that once it dropped the proposal that it released the details to the public.
Last week CAA Executive Director Kevin Dillon declared, “It is quite unfortunate that after failing thus far in their extensive litigation and federal lobbying efforts, MGM has decided to expend even more resources on a public relations campaign that completely mischaracterizes the Connecticut Airport Authority’s proposal for casino development at Bradley International Airport. This desperate attempt at fear-mongering is just another chapter in MGM’s increasingly alarming track record of distorting the truth to protect its business interests and maximize its financial gain at the expense of the CAA.”
MGM continues to insist that the state’s process for determining a location for the Satellite casino is unfair because MGM is unable to participate. It claims that the process violates the Equal Protection Clause of the U.S. Constitution.
Although the Authority released its proposal to the public, the deliberations behind the proposal were held in secret—until MGM obtained copies through a Freedom of Information request.
When they tribes issued a Request for Proposal (RFP) they specified that the casino would be from 150,000 to 200,000 square feet and support dining and entertainment. The casino would have about 2,000 slots and up to 150 gaming tables, all at an estimated cost of up to $300 million.
They have yet to choose a location although they have narrowed the possible choices to Hartford, East Hartford and Windsor Locks.
The CAA proposed a $500 million 200,000 SF casino with restaurants, entertainment venues and even slot machines with a rooftop view of planes taking off. It was planned to accommodate 10,000 players a day.
MGM Resorts Executive Vice President Alan Feldman last week called the Bradley casino idea, “a very bad deal for taxpayers.” He added, “We know from documents released by the FOIC that the CAA was prepared to make significant financial and permit concessions without any public debate or referendum.”
Andrew Doba, a spokesman for the tribe, countered, “This latest attack by MGM reeks of desperation. The airport’s interest in hosting this facility is well-documented.” He added, “Let’s be clear — any site that we pursue will go through extensive public vetting and will ultimately seek approval from the Connecticut Legislature.”
Meantime the SchaghticokeTribe, which has also challenged the legality of the process for siting a satellite casino, has withdrawn its own challenge to that act.
Last month a federal judge dismissed MGM’s lawsuit against the law. It is appealing. MGM was partially funding the tribe’s lawsuit.
At the time that the tribe announced its lawsuit, MGM issued this statement: “As a global leader in hospitality and gaming, it is common for MGM to identify development opportunities around the world. In Connecticut, yesterday we announced a collaboration on the legal effort with the Schaghticoke Tribal Nation, with whom we have similar legal interests in that we both seek to have the current law in Connecticut replaced with a transparent process that allows fair competition among all bidders.”
The tribe is not a federally recognized tribe, which is why it has not yet been allowed to build a casino in the state. The Kent-based tribe argues that this is unfair.
The tribe withdrew its case without prejudice, meaning that it can bring it back at a later time. Richard Velky, chairman of the Schaghticoke Tribal Nation issued a statement that while it continues to hold that Special Act 15-7 is unconstitutional, “we are choosing to focus our resources on the upcoming 2017 legislative session, which will present a critical opportunity for the General Assembly to fix Special Act 15-7’s anti-competitive and unconstitutional framework.”
Like the tribe, MGM is already starting to apply pressure to Connecticut lawmakers. In a statement issued last week MGM said, “The public interest would be best served by affording world-class companies — MGM, the Mashantucket and Mohegan tribes, and others — an equal chance to compete and demonstrate what benefits would accrue to the host town and surrounding communities, along with Connecticut taxpayers. That is precisely what every state, with the lone exception of Connecticut, has done when a commercial casino has been contemplated.” It added, “When they reconvene in January, legislators can create a fair, open, transparent and competitive process that includes the public in this important decision.
