Wampanoag Tribe Unveils Taunton Casino Plans [Video]

The Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe unveiled plans for the First Light Resort and Casino in Taunton during a press conference at Taunton Town Hall on Monday.

The proposed facility will include 3,000 slot machines, three 15-story luxury hotels, and 9 retail stores.

During his opening remarks Tribal Chair Cedric Cromwell said that, despite their best efforts, casino opponents weren’t able to prevent the tribe and the city from building a first class gaming resort.

“All the doubters out there, sorry it’s over,” said Cromwell “because First Light Resort and Casino is happening right here in the City of Taunton, we’re going to have a ground breaking ceremony next month, then certainly construction to happen soon, this construction season, as we always said it would, guess what? It is now happening.”

State Representative Shaunna O'Connell  and State Senator Marc Pacheco were both on hand for the unveiling and expressed no doubt that the casino project would move forward as scheduled.

While some expressed concern that lawsuits or other would halt the project, Pacheco called it unlikely that the lawsuits would succeed and said all necessary conditions for the contract had been met, including land in trust.

“That decision about going forward was done with the signing of the contract,” said Pacheco “the final approval, the frosting on the cake so to speak, was needing to get land into trust…once that decision took place it triggered the approval of everything else.”

O'Connell said that with the progress being shown by the tribe, particularly with their Casino Compact, that building another casino in Brockton, or anywhere else in Southeastern Massachusetts, would be foolish.

“The one thing that we do not want to see is two casinos in Region C,” said O'Connell “that will not be good for the Commonwealth, it will not be good for our communities, it will not be good for the taxpayers.”

“I think what you see in front of you is reality, there is going to be a casino here in Taunton and hopefully that will be the one casino here in Region C.”

Mashpee Wampanoag officials say they plan to have casino operating by the summer of 2017.

Paul Steelman of Steelman Partners, the company that designed First Light Resort and Casino  says the casino will open first then gradually other amenities, such as the three 15-story luxury hotels will open later.

Steelman also says other amenities will be added over time that will keep visitors coming.

“We’ve designed ourselves a destination resort, and not a convenience based casino,” said Steelman “so the destination aspect of this will require that we add different amenities, more hotel rooms and things of this nature as the project goes along.

The casino project is being built in a partnership with the Maylasian based Genting Group.