Massachusetts Update

Old Raynham Greyhound Park Becomes First Slots Palace to sign Host Community Pact
The price paid to the town of Raynham seems hefty, but everyone seems happy with the potential boost. The Raynham project, offered by track owner George Carney and his partner Greenwood Racing, calls for a 175,000-square-foot building, entertainment venue, retail stores, and restaurants on the 125-acre site. Preliminary drawings for the project unveiled in April also showed space for a hotel. More details will be provided before the referendum, Tony Ricci, chief executive of Greenwood Racing Inc., said in a statement.
“Over the next 60 days, we will provide voters with extensive information about this exciting development, which will be a beautiful addition to the social landscape of the town and will provide a significant boost to the local economy,”
The state’s 2011 casino law authorized one slot parlor with up to 1,250 slot machines, along with three resort casinos. Raynham Park — on Route 138 in Raynham, a few minutes off Route 24 and Interstate 495 — is one of four applicants for the slot license, which is expected to be the first license awarded by the state gambling commission later this year.

A Need for the "WOW" Factor
Meanwhile, in a recent article by John Swinconeck of Boston.com, the head of the state's Gaming Commission, Stephen Crosby, was reported to have said that applicants looking to build one of three resort casinos in the Commonwealth need to have something “more” than a windowless facility that draws in visitors and makes it hard for them to leave. It seems that the "WOW" factor for those companies chosen for the three full-gaming sites must consider:

• breaking the old casino model, a box in the middle of a space - no windows, no way to get out, no clocks; basically keeping everyone in as long as possible
• avoiding the casino example that suck all the money it possibly can out of the community into your the enclosed box
• facilities that face outward, incorporating and enhancing the rest of the community and thereby helping to promote local tourism and businesses.
• designs that represent an appreciation for Commonwealth’s history of economic regeneration - what they call the "Masschusetts Brand"
• ensuring the development would be a “destination resort” casino, not a “convenience” casino.

If chosen on the "WOW" factor, as well as in accordance to the expectations of the Commission and the towns through the Community Agreements, these Casinos could be on the cutting edge of new gaming areas that change the model of casinos for the past 40 years (much like Steve Wynn impacted property appearances with the three tower hotel design in Las Vegas)

The Gaming Commission meets tonight. Their meeting agenda can be found at their website massgaming.com

That's all for now.

Binbin