East Windsor and South Windsor are two more Connecticut communities interested in hosting the casino the leaders of Connecticut's two federally recognized tribes hope to build.
MMCT Venture, made up of the Mashantucket Pequot and Mohegan tribes, released a statement Monday saying these two towns have joined East Hartford, Hartford and Windsor Locks in submitting proposals.
MMCT Venture has been seeking sites for a proposed jointly run a border casino to compete with MGM Resorts International, which plans to build a casino in Springfield, Massachusetts, but legislative approval is still necessary to make it happen. The venture is made up of the tribes that run Foxwoods and Mohegan Sun.
“Now more than ever, the Mashantucket Pequot and Mohegan tribes are confident that the site we select will make our facility competitive with MGM Springfield,” Kevin Brown, chairman of the Mohegan Tribal Council, said in a statement. “We look forward to reviewing and comparing these new and amended submissions and continuing a dialogue with Connecticut’s communities about how we can work together to save jobs and revenue in our state.”
Officials from MMCT Venture said Plymouth also applied, but the application is not being considered because it falls outside the scope of the RFP.
“Our two tribes are now one step closer to keeping thousands of jobs and millions of dollars within Connecticut’s borders,” Rodney Butler, chairman of the Mashantucket Pequot Tribal Council, said in a statement. “MMCT Venture is eager to explore our options, and ultimately build this facility in a community that values the tax revenue we’ll bring to the town’s grand list.”
South Windsor Town Council member Saud Anwar said in a statement that hosting a gambling facility presents challenges and thinks this is something the residents should be able to vote on.
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"Attracting jobs and economic development to South Windsor is a priority. But a gambling venue brings complex issues for any host town and this particular project is mired in uncertainty, and not a clear winner,” Anwar said. “Hosting a casino here will impact every resident of our town, and cannot and should not be made by a small group of political insiders. South Windsor residents need much more information, and they deserve the final say in a referendum.”
Leaders of the Mashantucket Pequot and Mohegan tribes have said their business in Connecticut will suffer once the Springfield casino opens in 2018 and the General Assembly's fiscal office is predicting Connecticut could lose $68.3 million in revenue.
In September, Alan M. Feldman, executive vice president of MGM Resorts International, released a statement and called MMCT Venture’s request for proposals process “a sham.”
Brown last month said the facility needs to be successful if they are going to save thousands of jobs and Butler said they want to build the casino in a place that values the large investment.
Pearce Real Estate, a Connecticut-based real estate company, administered the RFP and the proposals are being evaluated.
