Massachusetts may not be ready for casino gambling (unless Steve Wynn is building it). Voters said no and again no yesterday, in a series of referendums. Mohegan Sun is — quite understandably — asking for a recount. Its casino proposal lost by 93 votes out of roughly 5,200 cast. It’s citing problems with a voting machine in one precinct and wants votes retabulated by hand. Said one supporter, “I wouldn’t put it past Palmer to screw up like that with faulty equipment.”
Considering the generosity of Mohegan Sun’s deal with Palmer, this is a stunning setback. Now MGM Resorts International has the western region of Massachusetts all to itself, depending on the clemency of the Massachusetts Gaming Commission and MGM’s ability to exorcise Pansy Ho‘s specter. Since the decision won’t come down until April, CEO James Murren can look forward to six months of nail-biting. MGM also now has to deal with the prospect of a casino near feeder market Albany, cutting into its prospective revenue base.
Defeat in Palmer would be particularly bitter for Mohegan Sun, which has invested six years in trying to obtain a casino there — and which would have paid the city $35 million across its first two years of operation. If I were affiliated with Foxwoods Massachusetts, in Milford, my takeaway from yesterday would be to be afraid, be very afraid. FoxMass comes up for a vote on Nov. 19.
As expected, voters in Revere gave their aye to Suffolk Downs but it was defeated in East Boston. In a somewhat surrealistic remark, COO Chip Tuttle said the track would “reassess” its casino ambitions, although one of two host communities had voted it down, 56% to 44%. Revere Mayor Dan Rizzo is recommending a Rube Goldberg scheme whereby, although the track straddles two cities, all the casino product would be on the Revere side of the line, where Suffolk has 58 acres it can cannibalize. Whether time — or Massachusetts regulations — are on Suffolk’s side remains to be seen. (The design would have to be cobbled together by New Year’s Eve.)
It was an altogether different story in New York State, where casino expansion won with 57% of the vote, a potent mandate, even if Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) waited until Monday to campaign on behalf of Proposal One. None of the big Vegas players has shown an interest in New York … yet, although Genting Group is expected to make a play for one of the two Castkills casinos. However, both Tioga Downs and Saratoga Raceway hope to upgrade from VLT-parlor to casino status, so the net increase in gaming capacity may be less than anticipated. Slot suppliers like International Game Technology and Bally Technology will be eventual winners, but not for a couple of years at the soonest. American Gaming Association President Geoff Freeman chose to overlook the debacle in Massachusetts and issued a congratulatory message for the Empire State. Freeman’s predecessor, Frank Fahrenkopf, almost always steered clear of intrastate issues but the new AGA prexy clearly is very much his own man.
In one other race of note, New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie (R) obliterated state Sen. Barbara Buono (D), capturing 60.5% of the vote. This means Christie’s five-year rescue plan for Atlantic City will be allowed to run its course.
Oh, yeah. Some kid from Vegas won the World Series of Poker last night.
The defeat in East Boston was in great part because the Catholic church really rallied the troops against it. Eastie being primarily Hispanic and Italian (i.e. very Catholic indeed) they got out the vote en force. Plus the local restaurants there were vehemently against it, fearing the worst for their (already) traffic congested neighborhood. Not opposed to it myself (my city borders Everett but not East Boston or Revere) but the fact is that our 19th-century-meets-Eisenhower-era infrastructure is totally not ready for anything that large near the city.
And a Republican actually won the Mayor’s race in A.C. That is a remarkable accomplishment. Thank God there is a pulse in that town!