Boston’s Walsh won’t fold after casino case tossed out
By NBP Staff | December 4, 2015, 20:58 EST
BOSTON – Mayor Marty Walsh isn’t folding yet in his fight against an Everett casino planned by Wynn Resorts, even after a Suffolk Superior Court judge tossed out a lawsuit seeking to block the $1.7 billion development.
“I’m not going to roll over,” Boston’s mayor told reporters in City Hall, according to video posted by the MassLive website. Still, Walsh stopped short of saying he planned to appeal a ruling dismissing complaints over the award of a casino license by the state Gaming Commission.
On Thursday, Judge Janet Sanders threw out the legal challenge that focused on traffic impacts of the planned 629-room hotel and casino, with 4,580 “gaming positions.” The judge said the project isn’t located in Boston so the city has no standing as a host community and had waived its standing as a “surrounding community.”
Legal costs have so far exceeded $1.2 million, according to a Boston Globe report.
“It’s worth it,” Walsh said in response to a question about the costs. “I’m fighting on behalf of the people of Boston.’’
The city has cited the estimated 23,000 vehicle trips per day to the nearly 40-acre Everett site along the shores of the Mystic River, saying much of that traffic would travel through Sullivan Square in Charlestown.
Wynn won the sole license for a Greater Boston casino from the Gaming Commission, beating out rival proposals, including one that would have involved the Suffolk Downs horsetrack which sits partly in East Boston and partly in Revere. The lawsuit asked the judge to invalidate the license and bar the commission’s members from taking further steps related to the matter.
Sanders dismissed the city’s claims as well as a similar challenge from Revere.
“We are hopeful that Wynn and the cities of Boston and Revere can now begin to reconcile their differences through open dialogue and negotiation as opposed to legal action,” said Elaine Driscoll, a commission spokeswoman.
At City Hall, Walsh said Boston is engaged with Wynn and officials from Everett and the state on resolving traffic and other environmental issues. He called the discussions “productive.”