I see it whenever I'm on the train toing-and-froing my sister Trish's n Salem. I see it whenever my brother Rich and I are making a periodic trek to Bertucci's in Medford. 
If you're anywhere near it, it's hard to miss Encore Boston Harbor, looming up over everything around it. Which ain't much.
This casino has now been here for 7 years.
I've been meaning to get there, if only for a look-see, but the closest I've gotten is a look-see out a train car or car car window. And if I ever do get there, it will be via water shuttle, which is kind of a cool way to get to a casino. I guess.
And I will go there, if only because I do like gawking. It's just that gambling's not my thing. The few times I've been to casinos, it's been for however long ten dollars lasts on the quarter slots.
When Wynn Resorts decided to take a gamble on Boston, the location they chose for Encore was the decidedly unprepossessing blue collar town of Everett, an industrial "suburb" that's not exactly the sort of place that comes to mind when you hear the word "suburb." The only cool (or cool-adjacent) thing about the location is that it's on the Mystic River which, let's face it, is one fabulous name for a river, no?
When you take the water shuttle:
...it passes former scrapyards and gritty warehouses, remnants of the Mystic’s industrial heritage. Then, as it approaches a bend in the river, a bronze and glass tower appears, the single word “Encore” shimmering in gold script at its top like a $2.6 billion monument to the idea that everything in its glow, including the hardscrabble city of Everett, would be transformed.
That was the promise of owner Wynn Resorts, when it opened seven years ago. The casino would replace a contaminated industrial waterfront that had sat empty for a century, create thousands of union jobs, generate millions in tax revenue, and build a luxury destination that would bring visitors to a long-overlooked corner of Greater Boston to stay, eat, and, of course, gamble.
...After winning a hotly contested license to build Greater Boston’s only casino in 2014, Wynn executives promised a destination that would attract travelers from around the world, with high-quality dining and nightlife and entertainment “unlike anything the region has ever seen.” It wasn’t just marketing talk; it’s partly why they prevailed, with state gaming officials weighing the broader boost it would bring to the region’s economy. (Source: Boston Globe)
Let's see how all this has panned out.
When it was being built, the Encore was definitely a boon for local union members in the construction trades. But as I'm writing this, over 1,300 of those promised union workers are striking for wages and benefits that are comparable to what Boston hotels pay. (The local political establishment is pretty much with the workers, and the unions have - here's hoping - put a bit of a dent in operations, even though some positions (like those that take care of the gambling) aren't unionized/striking. My brother-the-union-guy (ret.) has spent a bit of time on the picket line. And I will be deferring any visit to Encore until the strike has settled. Among other things, the free water shuttle isn't running, so there's that.)
As for any transformation of Everett? Hundreds of Everett-onians/Everett-ites are employed there. The environmental cleanup that was part of the development has surely been welcome. Everett has received over $50M a year of payments in lieu of taxes. And there's promises of a new commuter rail stop, which I'm hoping will not be on the Newburyport/Rockport line I take to Salem, as there's already a quick stop in Chelsea, a few minutes out of Boston.)
But has Everett been transformed? Not from what I can see. (And I have no idea what the Commonwealth of Massachusetts has done with the $1B in taxes that Encore has put in our coffers. I'm sure it was put to good use.)
As for creating an international destination that would bring in visitors from around the world?
That, apparently, ain't happening.
International visitors to Boston are nothing new. We're in the Top 10 of destinations that foreign travelers come to in the US, but they're here for Boston. Not for Everett.
Alas:
Encore lacks the sort of amenities that draw non-gamblers and multiday visitors. With little available land, there’s no golf course, pool, or shopping mall. Nor is there a theater or arena for major concerts or big comedians to perform; state law, designed to protect nearby concert venues, prohibits Encore from operating on-site entertainment facilities of between 1,000 and 3,500 seats.
What Encore is is pretty much a casino for locals. One that faces a lot of compettion from Foxwoods and Mohegan Sun, the well-established tribal casinos in Connecticut that have a lot more of the amenities that draw visitors. There are also casinos in other nearby states. And with all the sports betting opportunities out there, you don't need to go to a casino to satisfy your gamblng jones.
There are some high rollers who frequent the joint, the most recognizable being professional athletes, who certainly have the coin to fancy sup and high roll at a casino (where they're likely comped on the fancy supping).
1 comment:
MGM did a brilliant job in Springfield but is now selling the property. It's as if a city's DNA prevails.
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