Selectmen in Windsor Locks, one of two towns angling to host the state’s third casino, will meet Tuesday to set a date within the next three weeks for a townwide vote on a proposed development agreement for the project.
First Selectman J. Christopher Kervick said Monday the special selectmen’s meeting is set for 5:15 p.m. at Town Hall.
MMCT Venture has named three sites in two towns as finalists for a third Connecticut casino. The Windsor Locks sites include one at Bradley International Airport and a second on the Thrall tobacco farm site near I-91.
The Mashantucket and Mohegan tribes also are evaluating a site in East Windsor as they progress toward choosing one final site for a third casino to compete with $950 million MGM Springfield casino when it opens in the fall of 2018. East Windsor selectmen recently backed a proposed development agreement with the tribes, but no site has been selected yet.
“We’ve been negotiating pretty heavily back and forth and there’s an offer on the table,” said Kervick. “The ball’s in [the tribes’] court, so we’re hoping they’ll agree to the latest terms of the proposed development agreement.”
Kervick disclosed some of those terms Monday. He said the town expects slightly less than $8.5 million in gaming revenue to be returned to the town. That revenue would be directed at building and repairing infrastructure and paying down debt.
Kervick would also like to use a large percentage of potential casino revenues to provide a property tax credit for owners of one- and two-family residential properties, he said.
“I prefer to go to referendum with a proposed agreement,” Kervick said. “We’re not requiring a decision on the site [yet], but if they choose Windsor Locks we’re comfortable with these terms.”
