Columnist suggests the Mohegan Tribe of Connecticut might still be able to pursue a commercial casino in neighboring Massachusetts:
Mohegan Sun has now swung and missed twice at licenses to open resort casinos in western Massachusetts and the Boston area. So will Mohegan Sun try a third time and bid on the last casino license available in southeastern Massachusetts? The Mohegan Tribal Gaming Authority has made no proposal in that part of the state and has said nothing about any interest. But the tribe knows that gambling revenue at its casino in Uncasville, Connecticut continues to be siphoned away by newer, glitzier facilities in neighboring states and it has to diversify and open other casinos to keep its finances stable. After the Massachusetts Gaming Commission picked Wynn’s proposal, Moody’s Investors Services said Mohegan’s Sun failure to win the license could make it harder for the Mohegan Tribal Gaming Authority to manage its debt. Moody’s analyst Keith Foley wrote that the MTGA is “highly leveraged” and could have trouble refinancing its debt at reasonable interest rates and terms equal to or better than what it is paying now.Get the Story: