Revere, Suffolk Downs Union Sue Gaming Commission
REVERE (CBS/AP) -- The city of Revere and a union representing Suffolk Downs workers filed a lawsuit against the Massachusetts Gaming Commission Thursday for awarding a casino license to Wynn Resorts in Everett.
Wynn was awarded the casino license last month over Mohegan Sun's plan for a resort casino on the Suffolk Downs' property, where the final day of horse racing was recently held.
The city and union said in a statement that they were suing over "a flawed process that includes multiple violations of Massachusetts law and that potentially benefits criminal interest."
Opponents of a casino in Everett have said that it will make traffic in the area worse. And earlier this month, federal and state grand juries indicted three owners of the waterfront land that Wynn Resorts plans to develop into a $1.6 billion resort casino.
"There are a number of troubling and alarming failures by the Gaming Commission that raise serious questions about the entire process of awarding the Region A license," said Revere Mayor Dan Rizzo.
In response, the gaming commission said it was confident in the licensing process.
"The Gaming Commission anticipated and understands that applicants and other invested parties, who are unsuccessful in their bid for one of the limited number of highly-coveted expanded gaming licenses, are going to be sorely disappointed," the commission said in a statement. "This latest effort is yet another manifestation of disappointment from invested parties after a lengthy evaluation and public deliberation process that was based solely on the merits of competing proposals."
On Nov. 4, Massachusetts voters will decide whether or not to repeal a law allowing for casinos to open in the Bay State.
(TM and © Copyright 2014 CBS Radio Inc. and its relevant subsidiaries. CBS RADIO and EYE Logo TM and Copyright 2014 CBS Broadcasting Inc. Used under license. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)
MORE LOCAL NEWS FROM CBS BOSTON