Plainville gambling opposition group disbands

Plainville gambling opposition group disbands

Posted: Thursday, March 6, 2014

BY JIM HAND SUN CHRONICLE STAFF

PLAINVILLE — A local group opposed to expanded gambling has decided against filing a suit to try to stop slot machines from coming to Plainridge Racecourse and is instead disbanding.Mary-Ann Greanier, head of No Plainville Racino, said in a statement that it was determined a law suit would be too costly and the group could not afford it.


There is a great financial “imbalance” between the gambling industry and those who oppose it, she said.

Greanier had maintained that a suit was possible because she felt the rights of voters were violated when Penn National took over Plainridge just days before a Sept. 10 town vote on whether to approve expanded gambling at the Route 1 harness track.

The last-minute arrival of Penn National did not give voters adequate time to evaluate the company, she said.

Regardless, 76 percent of Plainville voters approved of the slot machines.

The state Gaming Commission last week awarded the state’s lone slot machine license to Penn National, allowing it to build a $225 million facility for 1,250 slot machines.

Greanier said her group would disband and join a statewide effort to get an expanded gambling law repealed by way of a referendum question on the November ballot.

“Now that Penn National has been given a casino license, No Plainville Casino must change its tactics by joining with other citizens from across the commonwealth who are also opposed to predatory gambling. They will become part of the effort to stop all casinos and slot parlors anywhere and everywhere in the state,” the group said in a statement.


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