Gaming Developer Sets Sights On Worcester
A Chicago gaming developer has taken the first steps toward making Worcester the only city in the state with a slots parlor.
According to a memo City Manager Michael V. O'Brien sent to city councilors Wednesday afternoon, Mass Gaming & Entertainment LLC, a subsidiary of Rush Street Gaming, notified him that morning that the city is its choice for a slots development.
Rush Street was formed in 2009 by Neil Bluhm and Greg Carlin, whose casinos include Niagara Falls and Philadelphia, according to the company's website.
Mass Gaming is one of four entities seeking the one slots license in the state that was permitted in the 2011 gaming law. It's competing with Plainridge Racecourse in Plainville, Raynham Park in Raynham and PPC Casino Resorts, which has yet to announce a location.
Mass Gaming has not announced an exact location within Worcester, however a vacant, 14-acre site owned by manufacturer Wyman-Gordon has been at the forefront of the conversation of gaming in Worcester since the beginning of the year when Cambridge-based hotel developer Richard L. Friedman told the city that he had entered into a long-term agreement with Wyman-Gordon, giving his firm the right to build. He said he was seeking a gaming developer to partner with.
The Wyman-Gordon site is near Kelley Square and the subject of an ongoing study determining whether the city should pursue seizing it by eminent domain.
In Wednesday's memo, O'Brien said he looks forward to receiving more detail on Mass Gaming's proposal in the coming weeks.
"I have been clear that any proposal would have to integrate with our broader economic development agenda underway and it must complement, and not undermine or siphon away from, our theaters, cultural venues, restaurants and businesses," he wrote.
He went on to say the firm has been listening to his concerns and requests.
"The concepts they have discussed, to include a full-service hotel, are on the right path," O'Brien wrote.
Mass Gaming will need to reach an agreement with O'Brien and the city council before eventually taking its proposal to voters in a citywide referendum.
"I'm going to keep an open mind and make sure that it has a positive impact on the city," Mayor Joseph Petty said of the proposal. "You've got to make sure it doesn't have a negative impact … And it's just not a standalone building that doesn't take into effect the neighborhood and neighborhood planning."
He said he'd like to see the plan and would want it to lead to job creation.
Meanwhile, a Massachusetts Gaming Commission spokeswoman said Mass Gaming had not officially notified the agency of its plans to open in Worcester.
O'Brien said the city has reached out to the commission to access funding that would underwrite the city's to evaluate the slots proposal.
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