Community leaders voice casino concerns
LAKEVILLE — Leaders from more than a half-dozen towns that surround a proposed Mashpee Wampanoag casino in Taunton pleaded with Massachusetts Gaming Commission Chairman Stephen Crosby to help them plan for potential effects.
On the same day a compact was signed by Gov. Deval Patrick and Wampanoag leaders, town officials gathered Thursday afternoon at the Lakeville Senior Center at a meeting that suddenly took on more urgency.
Crosby, whose five-member commission will oversee regulation of the Indian casino, jotted notes as selectmen and town administrators from Berkley, Bridgewater, Freetown, Lakeville, Middleboro, Raynham, Norton and Rehoboth took turns ticking off issues such as traffic, pollution, water usage and public safety.
Several leaders criticized the timeline that puts an approved compact in place even before they've been given a chance to study potential effects from the neighboring casino project.
"They came out with what may be a pretty good compact, but with no input from surrounding towns," Berkley Selectman Stephen Castellina said.
Berkley already has spent several thousand dollars in attorney fees just to get a meeting with the tribe where it asked for money to do a study to identify effects, he said. "There's pretty good odds we won't be getting any (money)," he said.
Other officials said the casino could result in people moving to town with school-age children, some of them requiring special-needs services because they don't speak English.
"The influx of two or three additional kids can be a budget buster for some of our towns," Richard Brown, town administrator for Freetown, said.
Crosby sought to ease their fears, saying the gaming commission might be able to provide money for an impact study from $15 million it was budgeted from the state's rainy day fund.
He also pointed out times where the surrounding towns will have an opportunity to express their concerns with the proposed $500 million casino in Taunton.
Towns will have a say in the state and federal environmental impact reviews required by the compact, Crosby said. The commission is also in the process of hiring an ombudsman to help town officials get the answers they need, he said.
Though a compact agreement has been reached, the federal approvals still required will not happen quickly, Crosby said. "There is time to take a deep breath ... to marshal resources."
An estimated $7 million generated from the 21.5 percent of annual gross gambling revenue the Wampanoag have agreed to pay will go into a mitigation fund to help with infrastructure and other issues in surrounding towns, Crosby said.
The commission will eventually define what constitutes a surrounding community and an advisory board will distribute the money, he said.
Middleboro officials, who once had a deal with the tribe to bring a $1 billion casino to that town, urged Crosby and the other towns to be cautious in dealing with the tribe.
"They have a tendency, historically, of not living up to their promises," Selectman Allin Frawley said.
The tribe should be forced to resolve its dispute with Middleboro before it's allowed to move on, state Rep. Thomas Calter, D-Kingston, said.
"I will not only vote against the compact, but I will encourage my colleagues to vote against it," he said.
The group of officials, rallied by state Rep. Keiko Orrall, R-Lakeville, has agreed to continue meeting to discuss issues of mutual concern.
"Taken together, you have a lot of muscle in the process," Crosby said.
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