Rush Gaming Pulls Plug on MILLBURY!

Casino-Free Milford

CONGRATULATIONS to our neighbors in Millbury who have been fighting the lone slots parlor in Central MA. Rush Gaming has pulled the plug!!

http://worcestermag.com/2013/09/06/breaking-rush-street-gaming-pulls-slot-parlor-proposal-from-millbury/13998

Matt Brodeur on "Slots: A Bad Bet for Millbury"

Published on Sep 3, 2013

Matt Brodeur discusses the jobs and host agreement for Millbury during his segment of our Millbury public access TV show entitled "Slots: A Bad Bet for Millbury".

Les Bernal on "Slots: A Bad Bet for Millbury"

Published on Sep 3, 2013

Les Bernal of Stop Predatory Gambling discusses the proposed slots parlor in the Town of Millbury in our public access TV Show entitled "Slots: A Bad Bet for Millbury"

Walter Swenson on "Slots: A Bad Bet for Millbury"

Published on Sep 3, 2013

Walter Swenson discusses the traffic study surrounding the proposed slots parlor in Millbury during his segment of the Millbury public access TV show entitled "Slots: A Bad Bet for Millbury"

 

Lesa McWalters on "Slots: A Bad Bet for Millbury"

Published on Sep 3, 2013

No Slots in Millbury President Lesa McWalters discusses the reasons why she formed the no slots campaign group in this segment of our Millbury public access TV show.

Bravo, Millbury!

FROM: NoPlainvilleRacino

An inspiring sight — young people outside the Millbury High School tonight before their Planning Board hearing on the slots proposal.

 

 

An inspiring sight — young people outside the Millbury High School tonight before their Planning Board hearing on the slots proposal.

Millbury Supporters Offer Misleading Information

Experience elsewhere has proven that LOCAL BUSINESSES suffer because Slot Barns are designed to keep PATRONS in their seats GAMBLING.

Experience elsewhere has proven that Slot Barns attract LOCAL PATRONS, spending discretionary income GAMBLING, such as PARX:

The lifeblood of Parx casino in Bucks is low-roller locals
Parx players tend to live within 20 miles of Street Road, many go even more frequently."We have customers," Jonas boasted, "who give us $25, $30 five times a week."

FROM: The McDonald's of Gambling

Friday, August 23, 2013

Casino supporters say Millbury can't turn down 'gift'

By Susan Spencer, TELEGRAM & GAZETTE STAFF

MILLBURY — The owner of at least one local business, Calabria Ristorante at 7 South Main St., thinks a proposed slots parlor would be good for the town. A "Yes" sign stood prominently placed on the wrought-iron fence surrounding the sidewalk dining area.

Inside the busy eatery, about a dozen residents gathered Thursday for the initial meeting of the Yes for Millbury Coalition, a group that believes Mass Gaming & Entertainment's proposed $200 million slots casino would be just what the town needs to lift it from its financial doldrums.

"The status quo is not positive," said coalition spokesman and former Selectman Brian Stowell. "We want to be a town that's in the affirmative. We want to be a town that gets things done."

He added that biotech and other commercial interests aren't knocking on Millbury's door to add to its economic base.

"We can't pass this up," he said. "This is a gift as far as I'm concerned."

Mr. Stowell said the majority of residents support the casino. He asked that coalition members get "Yes" signs out to homeowners, talk to neighbors one-on-one and speak up at Monday night's Planning Board hearing on a special permit for the project.

The Planning Board hearing begins at 7:15 p.m. Monday in the Millbury Junior/Senior High School auditorium.

The group is still working out its communication avenues and developing talking-point sheets, but Mr. Stowell highlighted a few facts to counter comments by casino opponents:

• The proposed casino would bring improvements to McCracken Road, which has been on the town and state's project list for years, much sooner — in two years instead of at least seven to 10 years without the developer's work. It would also hasten construction of a new public safety building.

Mr. Stowell said, "These are needs that are in front of the town right now. The casino would help offset costs."

• He stressed that the benefit to taxpayers of $3.25 million annually "is huge." By comparison, the average single-family homeowner's taxes would be $679 a year higher if Wheelabrator and the Shoppes at Blackstone Valley weren't built in town, which he said bring a combined $3.6 million to town revenue.

• When people question where the $3.25 million in new revenue will go, they need to be reminded that it's up to town meeting voters to act on the annual budget.

• While some have scoffed at a number of the roughly 400 promised casino jobs as paying $25,000 to $40,000 a year, Mr. Stowell, who works part-time at The Home Depot, said, "Guess what: That's good money for many people."

•Concerns about the environment and runoff into the Blackstone River don't take into account the current use of the McCracken Road industrial site, which includes a metal recycling plant and warehouse. "It's going to be better than what's there now. It will be LEED gold standard, which is above and beyond (standard building practices)," he said.

Dennis Leonard, a longtime teacher, coach and former Millbury School Committee member, drew applause from the group when he said, "I'm not a gambler but the more important thing is this town needs a financial lifting. We cannot let this thing go by."

"This is a good thing for the town and surrounding areas. We're going to get a lot of jobs out of this," said Charlie Smith of Millbury.

Mr. Smith said he owned a slots parlor when he lived in South Carolina for a few years and never had any problems.

"The people who are against it haven't really been involved in this," he said. "They haven't done their research."

Some of the most vocal opposition to the proposed casino has come from residents of McCracken Road, who already suffer from heavy mall traffic.

But Scott Miller, who lives at McCracken Road and Greenwood Street, said he supported the casino because it would hasten the much-needed improvements to that treacherous roadway, as well as provide money for other town services.

The new casino would also be an environmental improvement to the junkyard that is on the site now, he said.

"We just don't see the negatives," Mr. Miller said. "I think people are against it morally and not economically."

While he may disagree with several of his neighbors, Mr. Miller said, "I did my own research and made up my own mind. There's no negatives for us."

Mr. Stowell said that people can find out more about the proposed slots parlor and join Yes for Millbury on the developer's website: www.casinomillbury.com .

 

http://www.telegram.com/article/20130823/NEWS/308239851/1116

 

 

No Slots in Millbury Signs Available

Aug 20, 2013 at 1:49 PM, Lesa McWalters <lesamcwalters@yahoo.com> wrote:

Hello fellow supporters!

The No Slots in Millbury signs are in, and are at my house!!!

If you signed up to get one, you are welcome to pick one up  Wednesday between 3:00-8:00pm.

If you can't do that, I will try and deliver the sign to you.

Please be sure your home is visible to neighbors and drive-bys, and make sure you take the sign in at night (due to thieves).

ALSO, we are having a meeting Saturday morning at the Library at 10:00am. I will have the signs with me then, as well.

 

Best,

Lesa

Developer Pretends 'IMPROVED TRAFFIC' ...................

IMPROVED TRAFFIC?

Now that's FUNNY!

Most of the patrons at a SLOT BARN are LOCAL -- look at PARX.

Monday, August 12, 2013

Developer says slots plan would 'improve' traffic in Millbury

Sgt. Donald Desorcy speaks about the traffic impact of a slots parlor proposal during a Planning Board public hearing Monday night. (T&G Staff/BETTY JENEWIN)

 

 

By Susan Spencer , TELEGRAM & GAZETTE STAFF

MILLBURY — Development of a proposed slots parlor at McCracken Road near Route 146 would include traffic mitigation measures that would improve traffic conditions compared to today, a consultant for developer Mass Gaming & Entertainment told the Planning Board Monday night.

Architectural and engineering consultants presented plans for the physical design and traffic flow of the 110,000-square-foot casino. The project would require a special permit from the board for the commercial overlay district.

Planning Board member Michael Georges recused himself from discussion and voting because he serves as general counsel to a building supply company that may bid on the project, which would represent a conflict of interest.

Also, voters at a townwide referendum Sept. 24 would need to approve a host community agreement for developers to proceed to the next license application phase with the state Gaming Commission. The slots license application deadline is Oct. 4.

Mass Gaming & Entertainment is vying with proposals in Leominster, Tewksbury and Raynham for the state's sole slots casino license.

"When we talk about level of service, we're not making it worse," said Robert Michaud, from MDM Traffic Consultants, about traffic mitigation plans. "There would be fairly significant improvements."

Not everyone in the two-thirds-full high school auditorium bought the rosy outlook.

Planning Board Chairman Richard E. Gosselin had to tell one heckler to listen respectfully to the developer's presentation.

The developer proposed widening ramps to and from Route 146, synchronizing traffic lights and widening the McCracken Road bridge, with lanes and shoulders added suitable for bicycle traffic, among other improvements. These would shorten vehicle queues from Route 146 and those exiting the Shoppes at Blackstone Valley by 30 percent at peak Friday and Saturday evening times, Mr. Michaud said.

Mr. Michaud said that 90 percent of the traffic would come from Route 146 — 75 percent from the north and 15 percent from the south — while 9 percent would come from Route 20 and Greenwood Street, with less than 1 percent coming from other local roads.

His presentation drew laughter from the audience when he said that traffic at peak times turning left from Greenwood Street would increase by less than 10 percent. Casino traffic would be most heavy between 6 and 7 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays, Mr. Michaud said.

Millbury Police Sgt. Donald Desorcy, speaking as acting chief while Chief Kenny Howell is away, said, "Many concerns that we have, they have somewhat addressed."

Sgt. Desorcy said that from his experience with mall traffic, with extensive backups especially at holiday shopping times, he thought that extending and widening lanes, as proposed by Mass Gaming & Entertainment, would improve the flow.

"Every intersection is like a funnel. If you can extend that funnel, so more traffic can go through that intersection safely, that is imperative," Sgt. Desorcy said.

Chief Howell wrote in a letter that his research with other communities' experience with crime and traffic from casinos found conflicting results. However, he said that there would be increased traffic and public safety demands, and the town needed to support more police staffing and a public safety building to accommodate growth. He also recommended installation of optical traffic light systems to allow emergency vehicles to pass through intersections.

Several McCracken Road residents expressed concerns that the proposed mitigation wouldn't do enough. Some suggested that the road become a dead-end cul-de-sac to prohibit more cut-through traffic.

One McCracken Road resident questioned the impact of lighting from the casino's rooftop parking lot. Others said that the community didn't have enough information about the slots parlor details and impacts.

Chantal Royer-Haig said, "It seems to me in a month's time, there are a whole lot of things to consider. I feel like we're being rushed into a decision."

After more than three hours, the Planning Board continued the meeting to 7:15 p.m. Aug. 26 in the high school auditorium. The Planning Board was still hearing testimony after 10 p.m., and the casino debate was going on outside the high school even before the hearing began.

About a dozen people stood holding "Yes" signs distributed by the casino developer.

One sign-holder, John Leonard of Millbury, said he supported the slots parlor for "the jobs … it would be a lot more attractive than the salvage shop that's there now; and obviously you have revenue coming into the town."

Speaking of the construction opportunities, Mr. Leonard said, "We have so many people in the building trades in Millbury, we need the jobs."

Former Selectman Brian Stowell said he was spearheading a group of casino supporters. "Basically, we want to get the facts out there, the hard numbers," he said, referring to financial benefits to the town.

Across the driveway from the "Yes" sign-holders, Darin Haig, a licensed mental health counselor from Millbury, handed out No Slots in Millbury pamphlets.

"We can't find any independent studies — other than what Rush Gaming is putting out — that show this is good for the town," he said. "We're concerned there's been no information out there for an educated vote. The fact of the matter is there are no positive social aspects of this."

Mr. Haig said he worked in his counseling practice with people who have gambling addiction, alcohol addiction and other impulse-control conditions. He said that slots, in particular, are dangerous to people with those types of addictions. Slot machines, he said, give "the same kind of rush in the brain that a cocaine addict will have. The social perils are enormous."

http://www.telegram.com/article/20130812/NEWS/308129584/1116


PARX, the proposed partner of Raynham Dog Track is the epitome of SLOT BARNS:

Parx, The McDonald's of Gambling Addiction and Child Abandonment Comes to Raynham

The McDonald's of Gambling

For proof, head to Bensalem, where Parx - formerly called PhiladelphiaPark Racetrack - made $400 million last year. Impressive for a not-spot plopped among strip malls.

Inside the smoke-filled slots box, much of what casino bosses took for granted has changed. Gone are the days of wooing "whales" and dissing grannies in fanny packs. Parx president Dave Jonas says his revenue comes almost exclusively from local low rollers.
"We underestimated significantly how many trips our customers were going to make," Jonas said at last month's Pennsylvania Gaming Congress in Valley Forge.

"When I was in Atlantic City, to have 12 to 15 trips out of customers, they were VIPs," Jonas said. At Parx, "it's not uncommon for us to have 150 to 200 trips."

Moderator Michael Pollock, a well-regarded casino analyst, paused to digest the statistic.

"You said 150 to 200 times a year," he repeated. "That's three to four times a week, essentially."

"Yes," Jonas confirmed, most of his players fit that profile. In fact, because Parx players tend to live within 20 miles of Street Road, many go even more frequently."We have customers," Jonas boasted, "who give us $25, $30 five times a week."