Gaming Commission change needed
The Massachusetts Gaming Commission needs to improve the way it does business now.
Chairman Stephen Crosby abruptly resigned this week amid accusations of bias in favor of Wynn Resorts, as the panel faces a momentous decision on whether to strip the scandal-tainted company of its exclusive Bostonarea casino license.
This week, lawyers for Mohegan Sun asked Crosby to recuse himself from the Wynn investigation because he had appeared to have reached a conclusion in favor of Wynn Resorts before the investigation was completed.
The commission’s long-awaited report on sexual harassment and how much Wynn Resorts withheld information and lied in its casino application is expected soon, and pressure is building for tough action.
Wynn Resorts is building the Encore Boston Harbor — a $2.5 billion casino and hotel in Everett. The exterior of the project appears near completion. Incredibly, if the Gaming Commission strips Wynn of the license, it would likely be forced to sell the property to a new licensee, or any other buyer for another purpose.
If that doesn’t work out, Everett could be left with an enormous, half-finished construction site — a massive monument to incompetence and malfeasance.
The departure of Chairman Crosby is not enough. There have been questions of favoritism and ethics violations for years, and an internal investigation needs to be done to evaluate how rampant the violations may have been.
Information had also emerged about a possible business relationship between Crosby and a landowner who would profit from a Wynn casino, and alleged improper contact between Crosby and Wynn officials was reported.
As for the license, critics say there is already enough known to strip the lucrative license from the company regardless of what the final investigation says. Wynn resigned his post in the face of multiple sexual harassment accusations, and news of a $7.5 million payout that was not reported by the company or Wynn in mandatory financial and character background documents.
“Given what we do know now and what the Gaming Commission’s job is in terms of qualifying, I haven’t seen anything that they should have gotten the license in the first place on this issue alone, or should have it now,” said former state Attorney General Martha Coakley. “They’ve changed a few people, they’ve changed the name of the building, but there’s no indication they’ve changed the culture.”
With the investigation in its final stages, the Gaming Commission needs to operate in a transparent fashion. The daunting possibility that Wynn loses the license means several new processes go into play in what could be a sale to another party and that is where the scrutiny needs to be.