In a ludicrous reversal, the owners of Suffolk Downs offered to end horseracing at the track if the Massachusetts Gaming Commission would, pretty please with cream on top, give them a casino license. Up to that point, Suffolk Downs has been threatening to shut down racing if it doesn’t get licensed and made the continued splendor of the sport of kings central to its pitch. “We would not let racing or any other activity on the remainder of Suffolk Downs’ land get in the way of a successful gaming establishment . . . in Revere,” wrote track attorney Charles Baker. “Baker’s comments to state regulators appeared to undercut the track’s longstanding argument that building a casino at the track was the only way to stave off its closure,” reported the Boston Globe.
It would appear that Massachusetts Gaming Commisssion attorneys ferreted out a clause in the agreement between Suffolk Downs and Mohegan Sun which would enable Mohegan Sun to run the track as well. Whoops. Not good. Kinda undercuts that “Track and casino are two discrete entities” argument. Boston pounced on that as evidence that the jumbled Mohegan/Suffolk alliance lies partly within city lines, making Beantown a host community, and it would look like Boston had Suffolk’s number but good.
Suffolk Downs quickly issued a “never mind” retraction before the MGC voted to deny Boston host-community status. Boston Mayor Martin J. Walsh says the MGC shouldn’t have tipped off Suffolk Downs to the Mohegan-management clause. “This is a clear example of the commission demonstrating a predisposition to deny the obvious — that Boston deserves the status of a host community and the voters have an absolute right to vote,” he said, sounding more authoritative this time around.
By contrast, Downs COO Chip Tuttle issued a laughable, “Suffolk Downs has never wavered in our commitment to keeping the track open as long as gaming is licensed on our property.” The MGC is saying it pointed out the offending clause but “At no time did the commission or its staff request the removal of that provision,” which may be a distinction without a difference at this point.
Meanwhile in Springfield, several hurdles still remain between MGM Resorts International and a casino license. The MGC won’t vote on it until June 13 and then MGM will still have to wait until early July, when the Supreme Judicial Court rules on whether a proposed repeal of the state gaming law would be an unconstitutional taking of property or not. MGM Springfield President Michael Mathis signaled a shift in position when he said construction would follow the Supreme Court ruling. Previously, MGM’s been indicating it would wait until after the November election, if the repeal measure makes the ballot. Sharp tongues dominated the MGC’s final Springfield hearing, with the usual sky-is-falling, context-free remark that “Casinos are failing in Atlantic City and in Connecticut,” making an appearance.
Is sorry good enough? That’s the question facing MGC Chairman Stephen Crosby, who’s been the center of several controversies. Crosby has apologized but he’s had to recuse himself from all further consideration of the Boston-area license, so what good has his apology done? Crosby says he’ll serve his full seven-year term but it’s difficult to see that happening, with critics multiplying and “citing the increasing number of questions about his impartiality due to his ties to one of the parties involved in the Wynn casino project in Everett and his appearance at the opening day of race season at Suffolk Downs last weekend.”
City Councilman Sam Liccardo piled on, accusing M8trix of flipping off its obligations to Asian Americans for Community Involvement. A M8trix spokesman says “the charges are unfounded and the legal process will show that is the case.”
* Borgata players are suing for bigger shares of the prize pool from the aborted 2014 Winter Open poker tourney. They’ve been paid $19,323 each but are seeking $33,756.44 apiece, which would represent the totality of the jackpot. They’re also faulting Borgata for the fake-chip scam which brought the tournament to a screeching halt, saying the casino was holding the contest in makeshift facilities that lacked adequate oversight.
* Two convictions for illegally placing bets didn’t get the message through to (now) three-time loser Derek Bethea. Less than a month out of the slammer, he went to Atlantic City and did it again. (And got caught again.) Convicted of attempting “to place bets at craps tables after winning numbers had been determined,” Bethea will get his sentence on June 6.
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