Connecticut | Opinion

Rodney Green: Tribal casino won't stop Connecticut's job losses

Monday, April 11, 2016

The Mohegan Sun Casino in Uncasville, Connecticut. Photo from Facebook

A new casino will be good for the Mashantucket Pequot Tribal Nation and the Mohegan Tribe but it won't help the communities in southeastern Connecticut where the tribes are based, argues business owner Rodney Green:

No matter how good a job you do in running your business, when increased competition is brought in, there will be a decline in that business. Consumer spending can only go so far, and increased options do not increase the revenue — they merely rearrange it so that everyone gets a smaller piece of the pie.
This is the reason for the tribes’ sudden willingness to cooperate. They know that another casino in Springfield, Mass., will have a disastrous effect on their revenue. By building another casino north of Hartford, they will achieve some of their goal of saving revenue for themselves, thereby minimizing the negative impact of the MGM Springfield.
State government also will benefit from this additional gaming venue and will have some revenue to offset the losses that will happen to our existing casinos when MGM opens.
But no one is talking about what will happen to us here in New London County.
We will lose jobs no matter what, and even more so with another casino in our state. The casinos already employ about 10,000 fewer people than they did in 2007. Additional competition that is geographically closer will further erode our local jobs, no matter if that competition is in Massachusetts, Hartford or Bridgeport, and no matter who owns the casino.
We will lose jobs.

Get the Story:
Rodney Green: Third casino won't prevent local job losses (The Norwich Bulletin 4/9)