Windsor Locks Officials to Hear Casino Proposal for Bradley

The Connecticut Airport Authority is interested in having a casino at Bradley Airport and town officials in Windsor Locks will hear the plan during a special Board of Selectmen’s meeting next week.

First Selectman Steven Wawruck said the airport authority will present its plan during the meeting on Oct. 27.

The airport authority wants to build the casino on the former site of Terminal B that's in the process of being brought down.

"The CAA is exploring a number of options and possibilities regarding a potential gaming facility at Bradley Airport," Kevin Dillon, executive director of the CAA,  said regarding the casino request for proposal. "The State Legislature provided an interesting opportunity when it passed gaming legislation in the last session. As the Authority in charge of maximizing Bradley Airport’s potential, we feel it makes sense for us to explore this opportunity."

Sources previously told NBC Connecticut that the Bradley Airport off-track betting location in Windsor Locks, Enfield Square Mall and the former Showcase Cinemas property in East Windsor are vying for the casino.

According to Mohegan Sun President Bobby Soper, officials at Foxwoods and Mohegan Sun casinos have been receiving proposals from towns willing to host a potentially $300 million facility that would house slots, table games, restaurants and bars. Both East Windsor and East Harford have expressed interest in a casino run by Connecticut's two Native American tribes.

There are, however, legal hurdles in the way of a potential third casino opening. 

Existing casinos in the state are located on sovereign tribal land and Attorney General George Jepsen told the legislature in April that he has concerns about the effect a casino located off of tribal land could have on the existing compact between the state and the tribes.

The compact allows gambling only on tribal land. In return, the tribes give the state 25 percent of all slot revenues. The states have received more than $6.6 billion since Foxwoods opened its doors in 1993.

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