MGM opens casino with a flourish

Massachusetts’ first resort casino with expansive gambling and entertainment options opened Friday with a Las Vegas-style flourish.

A procession through downtown Springfield was to kick off with Budweiser Clydesdale horses and other entertainment in the morning.

Doors officially opened at 11 a.m. at the casino, hotel, entertainment and retail complex, considered the first of its kind in Massachusetts.

Plainridge Park, a more modest slots parlor south of Boston, has been open since 2015 and Wynn Resorts promises to open a $2 billion casino development just north of Boston next year.

The Native American tribes that operate Connecticut’s Foxwoods and Mohegan Sun resorts also are proposing a Hartfordarea casino to directly compete with MGM Springfield.

Here is a look at some of the game-changing MGM casino’s numbers:

7: Years since Massachusetts legalized casino gambling in 2011, paving the way for MGM and other casino companies to seek state gambling licenses.

3 years and 5 months: Amount of time from the project’s March 24, 2015, groundbreaking to its official Aug. 24 opening.

$960 million: Total project budget, which came in higher than the early estimates of $850 million.

3,000: People employed on opening day.

35 percent: Number of those who are Springfield residents.

$25 million: The amount Springfield is expected to receive annually from MGM once the casino opens its doors. (The city also received a $15 million upfront payment from the company.)

14.5: Roughly the number of acres the development covers, or about three city blocks.