Those gaming developers who find themselves unsuccessful with their efforts in getting their casinos into eastern or western regions of Massachusetts may be able to get their interests into the recently opened southeastern region. This would be possible under a new plan that was approved on May 17 by the Mass. State’s gaming commission.
The southeastern region of Massachusetts is also known as Region C in accordance with the state’s casino law of 2011. This current decision comes after a recent vote by the panel that approved opening up the region for commercial casino bids. In the past, the Mashpee Wampanaog tribe held the region exclusively. It was trying to get approval from both state and federal agencies to build a tribal casino in Taunton.
The vote by the commission was unanimous for the request that will possibly allow companies that had submitted initial applications to make new bids in the Region C area. This would include those who had originally been able to secure agreements that ended up being rejected by voters.
Under the new plan that is being discussed, developers may be able to offer new proposals for the southeastern region and do so without having to pay another $400,000 fee or submit new applications. This is provided only if the companies and their investors have already passed and cleared background checks that were conducted earlier by the panel. If needed, companies might be required to update or amend their original applications if they have new information on partners or have different financial backers not disclosed on the original proposals.
Under the current state law, as many as three resort/casino licenses are allowed for the state, with one license in each of the three regions (Regions A, B, C). The law also permits one parlor for slots in the state. To date, it is not certain if any of those who eligible under the new program will take advantage of it. Most of those that would qualify are still in the process of working on negotiations or waiting for voters.
It should be noted that the commission said also that this plan will not affect the Mashpee from their efforts to get their new casino. One commissioner stated that the commission has no intention of interfering with what the tribe is doing.
It has been reported that the tribe is trying to get what is known as a land-in-trust designation for the Tauton location. This has to come from federal agencies. The tribe is also waiting for a Legislative vote that deals with a revised state-level casino compact. This was negotiated with Governor Patrick earlier. Because of uncertainly as to what will happen with the tribe’s request, the commission opted to go ahead and open the region.
A tentative timetable has initial applications being submitted in October. It also suggests that the license award may be possible by the close of 2014. However, a few of the commissioners have stated that they would prefer the timetable be accelerated to avoid any problems.