I was thinking about the casino that is going into Springfield. It is projected to be a $900 million investment.
Springfield has a split property tax rate. The business rate is currently $39.04/1000. That would mean that a $900 million investment should pay $35,136,000 in annual property taxes.
The Host Agreement signed by the City of Springfield outlines annual payments of $26,190,000. Of the $26,190,000, $500,000 is going to surrounding communities. The rest includes a line for $17,600,000 as “Payment in Lieu of Property Taxes”. This amount is fixed for 10 years. It says that beginning in 2024, this will go up annually for certain years by 2.275% to 2.75%.
Am I missing something here? It seems to me that the City of Springfield is subsidizing the casino being built here by giving them a break on their property taxes. Can this possibly be true?
Yes, I realize that without the casino development, the city wouldn’t have nearly $1 billion in new construction, but is that any reason to give them a break on their project? Can a homebuilder say to the city, “gee, I’m going to construct 100 houses in the next five years at $300k apiece, that comes to $30 million in new value, normally that would be $600,000 in tax revenue, how about we cut a deal and you only charge me $400,000 because if I don’t build the houses, you won’t get the $600,000 anyway since I own the land and won’t let anyone else build there?
Is it surprising that the local newspaper didn’t report on this, given that their property was in the running to have a casino built on it, so they had skin in the game?
Can someone help me out here?
but that does line up with what we were hearing of what Worcester was being offered, in that the major benefit was purportedly that of jobs.
Welcome to the world of concerned citizens who have done the casino math and oppose slot parlors and casinos because they are not economic development but are rather government (taxpayer) subsidized monopolies that benefit the owners/developers and insider special interests that have a greedy finger in the pie.
West Springfield citizens successfully educated themselves on the above points as well as many other impacts that result in loss of services or raise in taxes as local businesses (jobs) are lost to the predatory gambling business. The community voted against the Hard Rock proposal. Palmer similarly put a fork in Mohegan Sun when the host community agreement was revealed as being the worst of the three in the region with no guarantees for local job development (flowery words like, “best effort”) and nothing allocated for education. The only mitigation was to roads that would directly benefit the proposed MS casino. Six years of promises from MS and nada was delivered.
The greater Springfield MSM has been in the tank for casinos for six years. The Republican dumped Larry McDermott the publisher who was anti-casino and began a drumbeat that echoes across the Pioneer Valley in favor of casinos. Above the fold color pro-casino articles have been weekly events (with nearly daily coverage of anything casino) in the Republican newspaper (Masslive.com)- which was eyeball deep in potential financial deals with developers. That little incestuous city has a history of corruption and insider deals that smells worse than the infamous Bondie’s Island waste treatment plant. The greater Springfield rock station (WAQY 102fm) has bus trips sponsored by Mohegan Sun. The last Winter Olympics was underwritten by Foxwoods for wwlp.com, Channel 22 – the major western MA commercial television outlet. And, the greater Springfield networks rarely cover the debates and opposition from other areas of the Commonwealth on the casino issue so unless one really works at it – reality based information is hard to come by.
East Boston got the facts (which is a supreme battle with the MGC and proponents keeping enormous chunks of information confidential)
Here’s a short list of the citizen heroes whom you have probably never heard of who studied the proposal and came to the logical, mathematical conclusion that they are bad for communities and bad for the Commonwealth.
West Springfield, Al Cabot, CPA leader in community discussions on host agreement; Karin Theodoros, JD Tewskbury; Matt Cameron, JD East Boston; Celeste Myers, East Boston; John Ribeiro, Winthrop; Mary-Anne Greanier, Plainville, Brian Herr, Hopkinton BOS, Charlotte Burns, Palmer, Tom Larkin, Mary Tufts, Emma Ladd Shepherd…..hundreds of others of good people from all walks of life and political orientation who have been blocked and ignored by our Democratic leaders including state Senator Stanley Rosenberg, who refused to consider independent cost-benefit analysis prior to passing the casino/slot law.
Middleboro…..facing unions busing T-shirters in to the insane summer town meeting to vote on the Wampanoag proposal. Remember the inevitability meme promulgated in 2007 that compelled Governor Patrick to bring these gimmicks to MA? The tribe still does not have Land-into-Trust to be able to develop a tribal casino.
Bad Information?!?!? Let’s see…..Deval’s Advisor for casinos was whom? The same guy advising Marta Coakley for the corner office who takes in $$$ as a consultant for gambling interests.
Silence of the lambs of nearly all state employees and contractors with the BIG Three supporting casinos……next in line the Boston Chamber of Commerce and the Globe, porked, fried, dead……with the exception of some tiny voices speaking truth to power.
All of the long time opponent of United to Stop Slots in Mass, USS-Mass.org. For current data see RepealTheCasinoDeal.org which is the upgrowth of statewide opposition and the group that collected signatures to Let The People Vote.
RTCD is the group that will fight Martha Coakley’s (the people’s top consumer protection agent, AG and candidate for Governor) blocking of the ballot petition. The case is destined to become a landmark decision on takings followed by an historic statewide vote on three casinos and one slot barn on the November 2014 ballot.
Revere, heads up! You are being hosed.
The other tactic that has been universally exploited is the renegotiation of government-casino agreements with lower tax rates, bailouts (New Jersey – approved by none other than everyone’s Valentine – Governor Chris Christie), adding smoking, lowering drinking ages, bringing back “Happy Hours (Grossman, cough!)”
Today, Mark Arsenault of the Globe revealed the predatory gambling industry’s penchant for taking liens on debtors. After, flaming their compulsion to gambling, naturellement.
If you are not ready to puke yet, I personally invite you and yours to join the movement to Repeal Casinos on the November 2014 ballot.
Don’t get me started on the Democrat Legislators who voted for a law that provides welfare to the horse racing industry as a fundamental part of the Speaker getting what he wants for his boyos. Okay, horse out of the barn:
WELFARE for horse racing!!! Yes, that is a cut of the “revenue” pie. Not children with cancer. Not victims of violent crimes…..not dismembered Veterans…..horse racing.
Did you know that?
Repeal It!
I’m curious as to whether there is a prohibition for politicians involved in the decision-making process to be hired by the casino companies.
I’m hearing whispers about this already, that certain elected officials will be hired by the casino once it opens. They’re probably rumors, but is there any law against this happening? Because if it does, then the entire process is questionably corrupt.
They tried to pass a 5-year waiting period to avoid corruption, but a few Senators and Reps were strongly against it and managed to block it.
If anyone is a candidate for a job with a casino, its recently retired Rep. Reinstein of Revere. The only question is whether the casino will be required to pay her retroactively for her time in the House.
I believe it was our superb state Senator Jamie Eldridge who sponsored the five year cooling off. Sheesh, we already have the previous generation like Big Red Weld and pious Tom Reilly at the MGC table shilling for casinos. Former Springfield Clerk of Courts and former Senate minority leader Brian Lees has been shilling casinos, marijuana and probably his momma! It is gross. Btw, the current COC who actually does have a law degree and legal training requested Bumps office audit the last year himself was in office (increasing his lifetime pension!!!!) because it was a bloody mess with thousands of dollars missing from the “books.”
http://www.masslive.com/news/index.ssf/2014/01/hampden_clerk_of_courts_laura.html
And the good people of Springfield just shrug their shoulders and move out if they can….if not, oh well.
City (and town) governments give out tax deals all the time, but they usually prefer new businesses, rather than new housing. Their position is that housing residents consume services (schools, police) that business occupants supposedly don’t. I have no knowledge of who’s in Springfield’s government, but town boards are typically populated by developers, realtors, and the lawyers who serve them. They always resist eliminating the two-tier tax setup, and favor giving further tax breaks to any business that wants to move to the town.
Short answer: Yes, casinos are being subsidized by taxpayers, as are lots of other businesses. To be clear, few of those other businesses are as toxic as casinos.
There are various creative, legal ways including TIF, deferral of taxes and those mentioned above that are measures local government can provide “incentives” for economic development. Tiered tax rates being another.
Casinos are govt., sponsored monopolies and predatory towards customers,small businesses and the same go f’s., that enable them. By now everyone is familiar with the terminology used by the industry to describe itself, “cannibalistic.” Is it prudent to think – even if you’re in a tough spot and to get – you have to give your fingers to a cannibal s/he won’t take your hand?
I know…preach……choir. The end.