A few days after a judge ruled against Boston’s legal effort to prevent gambling operator Wynn Resorts from building a $1.7-billion casino resort on the Everett waterfront, City Mayor Martin Walsh and casino mogul Steve Wynn discussed the matter behind closed doors, with Mr. Wynn calling the discussions quite “helpful.”
The gambling company was awarded one of three licenses for fully-fledged casinos in Massachusetts in the fall of 2014. Since then, Mayor Walsh and Mr. Wynn have been quarreling over the proposed project. The casino mogul wants to build a 24-story curved glass structure that would feature gambling options, as well as accommodation, food and beverage, and retail ones.
After the hour-long meeting between Mayor Walsh and Mr. Wynn, Michael Weaver, a spokesperson for the casino company, said that the discussions were “helpful” and “productive.” Yet, no agreement was reached on Tuesday.
Mayor Walsh said after the meeting that he was relatively optimistic about eventually reaching a mutually beneficial agreement with Mr. Wynn. The mayor explained that the two parties have been working on common goals and that the last meeting was an extremely productive one.
Yet, Boston’s top official is not likely to stop opposing the construction of the casino. He told local media that it is his top priority to protect the interests of the city’s residents, especially the ones that live in the Charlestown neighborhood. If a casino is built in Everett, this is expected to result in the already heavily congested neighborhood facing even more serious traffic issues.
Earlier this year, the City of Boston filed a lawsuit against the Massachusetts Gaming Commission, arguing that the selection of Wynn Resorts as the preferred candidate for the Greater Boston casino license was the result from “a corrupt process.” Last week, Judge Janet Sanders dismissed the accusations, stating that the state gaming officials have acted in accordance with the 2011 Massachusetts gambling law, when choosing the winning bidders for all three licenses.
In a separate lawsuit, Mayor Walsh challenged the issuance of a key environmental permit, which gave Wynn Resorts the green light to proceed with the construction of its casino. Commenting on that particular filing, the gambling operator said that it was an “unproductive” attempt that would result in Boston residents paying for the constantly increasing legal fees.
The amount of $1.3 million was spent on various legal costs up to June 30. However, Mayor Walsh’s administration has not published a figure for the fiscal year that started on July 1.
Apart from the Everett casino project, Massachusetts is likely to have two more full-scale casinos before the end of the decade. MGM Resorts is building a $950 million hotel and casino resort in Springfield. In addition, the Massachusetts Gaming Commission is yet to determine whether Mass Gaming & Entertainment would be allowed to build and operate a $677-million venue in Brockton.
