Tribes say they'll discuss third-casino plan at East Windsor meeting
MMCT Venture, the Mashantucket Pequot-Mohegan partnership that’s pursuing a third Connecticut casino, will hold a public meeting next week in East Windsor, one of the two municipalities being eyed as a location for the facility.
Windsor Locks, home of Bradley International Airport, also is in the running.
The meeting in East Windsor, described Tuesday in a news release as “a community conversation,” is scheduled for 7 p.m. Jan. 24 in the auditorium of East Windsor Middle School.
“We’re not coming to this meeting with fancy renderings or a signed agreement,” Kevin Brown, the Mohegan Tribal Council chairman, said in the release. “We want to be good neighbors, and a huge part of that is engaging local residents to hear their concerns and answer their questions. It’s also a chance for us to clearly outline the positive elements we want to bring to the community, like the good-paying jobs with good benefits that are so in need right now. We look forward to beginning this conversation next week, and to working with communities in the weeks and months ahead.”
The tribes have been criticized for not providing details of the sites they’re still vetting. Earlier this month, they eliminated from consideration three other municipalities that had responded to requests for proposals.
State Rep. Scott Storms, R-Windsor Locks, has introduced a bill that would require a municipality where a proposed casino gaming facility may be located to study the economic and social impact of casino gambling on the municipality and surrounding municipalities and to post the findings of such a study.
The bill has been referred to the legislature’s Public Safety and Security Committee.
Andrew Doba, a spokesman for MMCT Venture, said the scheduling of the East Windsor meeting was not a response to the Storms bill.
“Not at all,” he said. “We've always talked about pulling these meetings together after we narrowed the field. This is just another part of the process.”
The East Windsor casino site involves parcels off Interstate 91 that currently are occupied by a former Showcase Cinemas building and a former Wal-Mart.
“I am pleased that East Windsor is one of two towns being considered for a world-class entertainment and gaming facility,” East Windsor First Selectman Robert Maynard said in the tribes’ release. “East Windsor looks forward to working with the Mashantucket Pequot and Mohegan tribal nations to create a facility that will be to everyone’s benefit.”
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