Wynn, Gambling Regulators Sign Everett Casino License
BOSTON (AP) — Wynn Resorts and Massachusetts gambling regulators finalized the license Wednesday for a $1.6 billion casino outside Boston.
Wynn brings a track record of success in competitive gambling jurisdictions, including Las Vegas and Asia, said James McHugh, acting commissioner of the Massachusetts Gaming Commission.
It's also "taking on an enormous challenge" in redeveloping a heavily polluted former chemical plant site along the Mystic River in Everett, he said.
Commission members signed the license at the Boston teacher's union hall in Dorchester, along with representatives from Las Vegas-based Wynn, a day after the commission picked it over rival Mohegan Sun's $1.1 billion plan for the Suffolk Downs horse racing track in Revere.
Read: Keller: Can Suffolk Downs Be Saved?
Going forward, McHugh promised the commission will work to preserve thoroughbred horse racing in the Bay State, now that the lone track, Suffolk Downs, says it will likely have to close because Mohegan Sun has lost its bid.
Wynn will now turn its attention to the work of opening the resort, including securing the permits required to do the environmental cleanup on the site, said Robert DeSalvio, a senior vice president for development.
DeSalvio said the casino company has not decided at this point to wade into the campaign to defeat the November ballot question to repeal the state's casino law.
MGM Resorts and Penn National Gaming, who have won state gambling licenses as well, have pumped at least $1.7 million into a political action committee working to defeat the ballot question.
Wynn proposes a resort casino complex on about 30 acres that will include a 27-story hotel with about 500 rooms; 3,000 square feet of meeting and convention space; 94,000 square feet for shopping and retail; about 8 restaurants; and 3,000 slot machines and 150 table games.
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