State Sen. Joseph Boncore, at podium, on the steps of Revere City Hall, spoke against Question 1 on Wednesday with Mayor Brian Arrigo, left, John Powers, Robert Haas and RoseLee Vincent. Behind her, left, Joanne McKenna, Carol Tye, Arthur Guinasso, Susan Gravellese, Robert O’Brien, Michael Ferrante, Stacey Rizzo and Dan Maguire. Item Photo by Owen O’Rourke
By Gayla Cawley
REVERE — Officials are urging the city’s residents and voters statewide to reject a proposal that would bring a slots parlor to Revere.
If approved statewide on Nov. 8, Question 1 on the ballot would allow for a slots parlor at a location at least four acres in size and within 1,500 feet of a race track. The proposal is for a gaming establishment with no table games and no more than 1,250 slot machines.
Joe Gravellese, aide to Revere Mayor Brian Arrigo, said the language is clearly referring to Suffolk Downs.
Developer Eugene McCain is behind the proposal and has reportedly reached agreements to buy properties in the city near the racetrack, including a trailer park, where the slots parlor would be built.
Gravellese said after McCain garnered enough signatures to get his proposal on the statewide ballot, he got the necessary signatures to do a local ballot. A special city election is set for Oct. 18, and if approved, any future slot parlor in Revere would be limited to a location at least four acres in size on land that fronts both Revere Beach Parkway/Winthrop Parkway and Pratt Court. In other words, Gravellese said if the local ballot question is approved, any slot parlor in the city would be on McCain’s property.
Arrigo tried to delay the local special election, which officials said could cost the city between $50,000 and $70,000, until after the general election, but was unsuccessful in court. Officials said the outcome of the special election could become moot after the November Question 1 vote.
During a brief press conference on Wednesday, officials said they are not against gaming. Most of the day’s speakers alluded to their prior support for a full-fledged casino at Suffolk Downs, which was passed over in 2014, in favor of one in Everett, the planned Wynn Boston Harbor. They also expressed doubt that the facility, if approved, would provide any competition to the existing slots parlor in Plainridge, with 2,500 slots machines, or the Everett casino, slated for a 2019 opening.
“To my knowledge, this is the first time that local voters in Massachusetts have ever been asked to vote on a gaming proposal without a host community agreement,” said Arrigo. “My colleagues and I stand here today because this isn’t about being pro- or anti-gaming. It’s about good and bad ideas. Look at the proponent’s shoddy proposal. Look at their lack of a track record and ask yourself if this meets the high standards that we have for our community. We stand united in our belief that this proposal does not come anywhere close to the standards we have for sustainable, economic development in our city.”
If the local and state ballot questions are approved, the go-ahead is still needed from the Massachusetts Gaming Commission, which is only authorized to license three full resort casinos in three geographically diverse locations statewide and one slots facility. In November 2011, former Gov. Deval Patrick signed that Expanded Gaming Act into law.
“I believe it’s irresponsible to meddle with the gaming act, especially where it’s so early in the game,” said state Rep. RoseLee Vincent (D-Revere). “We have only one slot parlor in operation and we have three full-fledged casinos that are not even built yet. I was in full support of a full-fledged resort-style casino in the city of Revere, but this proposal is not a casino. It’s not even close. I think a slot parlor in our city would be an absolute disaster.”
Ward 5 Councilor John Powers said he was 100 percent opposed to the proposal.
“It’s a bad idea for Revere,” he said. “It’s a bad idea for everyone, all over the Commonwealth. We don’t need this.”
Gayla Cawley can be reached at [email protected]. Follow her on Twitter @GaylaCawley.
