Middleboro Votes Yes on Slot Machines
In what turned out to be the biggest town hall meeting in the city’s history, Middleboro residents voted to approve slot machines and casino gambling in their town. This does not guarantee that they will come there, but their approval will make it much easier for the Wampanoag Tribe to get them.
The vote ended up being 2,387 to 1,335 in favor of the slot machine casino, and if Governor Deval Patrick agrees with the voters Middleboro could end up with the first casino in the state. Right after the vote, the Board of Selectmen signed a legal agreement that binds the town to the proposed casino. It says that they support the $1 billion casino, and will stand behind them when the developers go to the state and the federal government for approval.
The tribe said that they were taken aback by the town’s support, and now they were off to begin negotiations with the governor for the casino. Glenn Marshall, tribal chairman of the Wampanoag Tribe said that as their ancestral grounds include Middleboro, it was like “coming back home.”
With the support of the town comes a nice paycheck for them as well. The casino’s developers have promised not only will they pay the town $7 million a year in cash payments, they will also give them revenues from the hotel, and will make road and infrastructure improvements. They will also pay them a onetime payment of $2 million for police and ambulance services.
The tribe thinks that they stand a pretty good chance of being able to run slot machines at the casino, as although Massachusetts does not currently allow slot machines, preliminary discussions have led them to believe that they might be successful. It also doesn’t hurt that their partners are the developers of the Mohegan Sun.