In tapping Wynn bid, state panel muddies waters for November ballot
YOUR EDITORIAL supporting the Massachusetts Gaming Commission for choosing the Boston-area casino site in advance of the November referendum goes against all of my perceptions of the situation (“In choosing Wynn, panel also gives voters needed clarity,” Sept. 18).
The 2011 law focused power first on single communities, which were not mandated to factor in the true effects of a casino on the state or other communities. In November, Massachusetts citizens will decide whether gaming establishments belong in the state. The Gaming Commission has muddied the waters by forging ahead with approval of the Everett site, thus making an already murky situation even more so.
In the first place, voters have to sort out how and why two contradictory processes can go forward simultaneously. Second, the approval motivates the Wynn group to target its vast resources, likely with large doses of wild optimism, toward the repeal effort. Third, the choice of the Everett site singles out a few communities for the direct risks inherent in casino development, thus relieving most of the state from such concerns, and softening oppo- sition.
In my opinion, this action of the Gaming Commission will weaken the referendum and could bias the vote in November.
SARAH BOARDMAN
Charlestown