Foxwoods to Play in Southeast Mass. Casino Contest
Foxwoods is officially making another run at a Massachusetts casino. The Standard Times of New Bedford reports the casino operator has signed a letter of intent to partner with KG Urban Enterprises, a New York-based developer that has long sought the last remaining casino license in the state. The plan is to build in New Bedford. Last month, KG Urban said it was in discussions with Foxwoods as a casino operator; now, the plan is a go.
Foxwoods, too, has had its eye on the southeastern Massachusetts region for a while, and previously had interest in going to Fall River. That sprung out of even longer-term interest in the state. Foxwoods had previously been after the Boston-area license, aiming to operate a casino in Milford before the town’s voters struck the plan down in late 2013. Like Mohegan Sun (which had sought to build a casino in Revere), Foxwoods’s flagship casino is in Connecticut. The state is expected to see gambling revenues dip when the Massachusetts gambling industry gets off its feet.
In its Milford effort, Foxwoods buddied up with developer Crossroads Massachusetts. The two will now be in competition for the southeastern license, as Crossroads is working with another organization out of Somerset to bring a casino to that town. A third proposal for the region is from George Carney, owner of the Brockton Fairgrounds, who is working with Rush Street Gaming to put a casino in Brockton. Carney previously lost out on a bid to bring a slots parlor to Raynham Park, which he also owns.
Let it never be said that the Massachusetts casino licensing process isn’t without its familiar players. But if you want to match Steve Wynn for star power this time around, former NBA commissioner David Stern is representing KG Urban as it tries to make the New Bedford casino a reality. (It’s not as random as it may seem.)
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