Mohegan Sun impact report: Palmer casino would lessen unemployment, benefit housing sales, and have minimal impact on roads
By
Follow on Twitter
on October 21, 2013
PALMER — Mohegan Sun Massachusetts on Monday released a report stating that a proposed $1 billion casino would have a minimal environmental and traffic impact on Palmer and surrounding communities and a positive effect on employment and housing sales.
The 36-page document, titled “Report of Impacts on Nearby Communities,” was prepared for the Mohegan Tribal Gaming Authority by consultants Beals and Thomas, of Southborough.
Mohegan Sun, of Connecticut, is proposing a resort casino across from the Massachusetts Turnpike interchange on Thorndike Street (Route 32).
The report is intended to take into account the regional impact of the proposed casino on surrounding communities in the areas of transportation, housing, economic development, water resources, open space protection and public safety.
Mohegan Sun is vying to build in Palmer, while MGM Resorts International hopes to build a casino in downtown Springfield. The state Gaming Commission will ultimately have to choose between the two for the one casino that is being permitted in Western Massachusetts.
The Mohegan Sun report primarily identifies neighboring communities as Belchertown, Brimfield, Ludlow, Monson, Ware, Warren and Wilbraham. It also takes into account the impact on the towns of Brookfield, Hampden, Holland, Sturbridge, Wales and West Brookfield.
“Mohegan Sun has always been a good neighbor in the regions where we operate, and we are carrying that philosophy into the surrounding communities in this region,” Mitchell Etess, chief executive officer of the Mohegan Tribal Gaming Authority, said in a prepared statement.
“Our discussions with neighboring communities are a critical step in pursuit of the Western Massachusetts gaming license. This report provides a baseline for determining impacts and will help facilitate an open and productive dialogue with these communities.”
The report notes there will be a “measurable but not significant” increase in traffic, but the impact on local roads would be negligible.
It projects 86 percent of all traffic to the casino would come by way of the Massachusetts Turnpike, and 74 to 80 percent of all visitors are likely to travel more than 15 miles to the casino. The casino traffic originating locally is expected to travel mostly on main roads including Routes 20, 32 and 181.
The study observed existing peak traffic conditions to be between 4 p.m. and 7 p.m. on Saturday and from 3 p.m. to 4 p.m. on Sunday. Based on projections, the casino would add some 1,700 cars on the road during peak Friday and Saturday hours, and 1,500 during peak periods on Sunday.
Daily traffic totals would range from around 16,100 on Sundays, almost 20,000 on
weekdays and 23,100 on Saturday.
In the area of unemployment, the report argues that most of the casino’s permanent employee base would come from people who already live in the Pioneer Valley. As such there would be no need to build additional housing units for workers. The casino would employ about 3,150 workers, with an average salary of $41,000 per year.
“Due to the high unemployment rate in the region, it is possible that jobs will be filled by residents of Palmer and nearby communities, producing no need for additional housing,” the report notes.
It also notes that while some people may move into the area to gain work at the casino, the region likely has sufficient housing vacancies to handle any increase.
The casino will produce nearly 4,000 construction jobs and another $230 million in construction materials, “some of which could be provided by local businesses," the report notes.
As for the impact on local businesses, the report indicates that hotels, restaurants and retail stores, in particular, may see an increase in business. “While it is possible that local entertainment venues may see a decrease in patronage, the overall impact on small businesses is anticipated to be positive due to the local spending from the casino, its patrons, and its employees.”
Ware Board of Selectmen Chairman Gregory A. Harder declined to comment on the report, saying he had only received his copy of the document Monday night and had not finished reading it. Selectmen are scheduled to meet Tuesday at 7 p.m. with officials from the Pioneer Valley Planning Commission to discuss the impact of the casino.
The thirteen neighboring communities that are seeking money from Mohegan Sun to mitigate negative impacts of the casino have until Nov. 1 to decide if they want to use the planning commission to serve as technical advisers on the project.
http://www.masslive.com/news/index.ssf/2013/10/mohegan_sun-backed_impact_stud.html
PALMER, MA (WSHM) -
Mohegan Sun Massachusetts released a 36-page neighboring community impact report this week.
The report identifies a list of 13 surrounding communities and breaks down the regional impacts of the proposed $1 billion Palmer casino project into several categories including: transportation, housing, economic development, water resources, open space protection and public safety.
The 13 surrounding communities mentioned are Belchertown, Brimfield, Brookfield, Hampden, Holland, Ludlow, Monson, Sturbridge, Wales, Ware, Warren, West Brookfield and Wilbraham.
The report concludes that the casino would create a minimal impact environmentally and on traffic. It also says that there would be positive impacts in areas including employment and economic development.
"Every town is unique in how the casino could potentially impact it," said John Flynn, chairman of the Board of Selectmen in Hampden. "Specifically, in Hampden we are concerned about any forces that come in to our town to put stress on our infrastructure, whether it is roads, schools, public safety officials, et cetera."
Hampden is located 5.4 miles from the proposed casino. And, Flynn says the town like many other surrounding communities will eventually make a recommendation to the state's gaming commission.
"I think we need to do a little more analysis of the report, make sure that everybody has brought their thoughts to the table and then bring one cohesive document back to the gaming commission," said Flynn.
CBS 3 did reach out to several other surrounding communities where town officials said they plan to carefully evaluate the report in the coming days.
Voters in Palmer will head to the polls Nov. 5 to decide if they want a casino in their community.
The company is competing against MGM in Springfield for the sole casino license to be awarded in Western Mass.
http://www.cbs3springfield.com/story/23758247/mohegan-sun-released-neighboring-community-impact-report
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment