Revere, Suffolk officials talk casino leadership

REVERE – Suffolk Downs Security Chief Paul Evans said when he looks at a future casino and how it would work in terms of safety, he knows it’s all about leadership.”And we have tremendous leadership,” said the former Boston Police commissioner.Evans spoke before a crowd of roughly 50 Revere businessmen and city officials about the impact of the proposed casino at Suffolk Downs in terms of traffic, safety and security.With Revere Mayor Daniel Rizzo, Boston Mayor Thomas Menino, Revere Police Chief Joseph Cafarelli and Boston Police Commissioner Ed Davis, Evans said he is not concerned about leadership.”We have people who know what they want,” he said, adding that includes a decrease in crime and increase in jobs.Evans said there were three things needed to ensure the casino is the safest in the country: collaboration, communication and planning. Collaboration means having the right people at the table to solve problems, communication means hearing from the public when an issue arises and having someone at Suffolk Downs to take the call, he said.”Preparation and planning have been going on for a while,” he added. “We’re fortunate to have Caesars, they’ve been at this a long time and have a history of training and problem solving.”Evans was referring to Caesars Entertainment, who Suffolk Downs is partnering with for the casino.However, Evans said the best crime prevention tool for any community is the ability to give someone a job.”Give a person a job and you get them off the street and put a little money in their pocket,” he said. “We’ll employ close to 4,000 people.”Accountability is second to leadership in importance, Evans said.”We have to be accountable, you have to hold us accountable,” he said.When it comes to traffic, Evans said he is not an expert but there will be $40 million to $50 million spent on infrastructure for impacted communities, which means namely, Revere and East Boston.Since signing on as Suffolk’s head of security Evans has had the chance to visit other communities with casinos including one in Louisiana and three in Pennsylvania, he said. None reported any significant impact from crime connected to the casino and one boasted a strong economic boom, Evans said.”I’m confident that with all of us keeping an eye on the ball and holding each other accountable we’ll have the safest venue anywhere,” he said.Rizzo said he had all the confidence in the world in Cafarelli, his officers and Evans.”I personally don’t anticipate any issues caused by casino activity,” he said. “When he talks about the economy?that’s really exciting.”Everyone will benefit from an uptick in business, he said.”And any social ills people may be concerned about will be far outweighed by the social ills of unemployment,” he added. “I know Revere will get it’s share of jobs. It’s exciting.”Chris Stevens can be reached at [email protected].