Springfield Mayor Domenic Sarno (along with his advisors) has made it clear to the Massachusetts state gambling commission that he does not want them to slow down plans to build casinos in his town. The commission has asked the mayor to cut proposals for new casinos from four down to one or maybe two. The mayor is saying, No!
In remarks Sarno made to the commission at a recent meeting between the two, he said: “It’s very difficult to say to residents who are hungry to work that you have to wait another six months, a year, 18 months.” The commission has said that it concerned that Sarno is moving too fast and that Sarno’s plans conflict with the commission’s plans which require writing new regulations for the incoming gaming industry. They also said they needed more time to review the various casino proposals that they have received. The state gambling commission controls the state’s three resort casino licenses.
For his part, Sarno and his staff have proposed instituting a speedier process that would allow for faster action in terms of evaluating the current competing proposals. These proposals have come in from Penn National Gaming, MGM Resorts, Hard Rock International, and Ameristar. Currently, the city plans to have these proposals presented during the upcoming months with December being the date when Sarno would choose at least one, but perhaps more, to negotiate with.
At that time, any agreements made would have to go before the voters for their approval. This would be accomplished through a referendum which is already planned for next spring.
At issue here is that the town of Springfield had wanted to start its competition earlier this month and planned to do so by asking developers to provide their basic information concerning their various companies as well as information on their individual proposals. More detailed information was scheduled to arrive in October, but, at the request of the state gambling commission, the city delayed the beginning of this process. The commission is worried that the town will select one or more of the proposals before it has time to finish its own investigation which would include looking into each applicant’s moral character of essential employees and company finances. Under current law, any company that does not qualify is not allowed to have a casino license in the state.
The commission said that it will take until sometime in 2013 before it can complete drafting and writing its criteria that will be used to judge each casino proposal. If Springfield moves too quickly, they reason, the town may select a project that does not meet the future criteria that the commission has yet to write.
Springfield officials want to move faster as approval of the projects will bring in work and revenues that the town needs. Slowing the pace will also cause large areas of land within the city to be held in limbo as gambling companies, some of which have already put in options to buy, wait for the commission’s decisions.