Connecticut Could See Third Casino

UNCASVILLE, Conn. (Associated Press) — The tribal authority that runs the Mohegan Sun and rival Foxwoods Resort Casino could join forces to operate a third Connecticut casino near the Massachusetts state line to compete with new casinos opening in the Bay State, its chief executive said.

Mitchell Etess, chief executive officer of the Mohegan Tribal Gaming Authory, told The Day of New London it's "very easy" to see a solution drawn up by the Connecticut legislature.

"We have the exclusive right," Etess said, referring to the tribes' Connecticut gaming compacts that would be amended to account for expanded gambling. "It's very easy to foresee some type of legislative solution that would be owned by the tribes — that would maintain revenue for the state of Connecticut."

A key state legislator said that although expanding gambling to make up for lost revenue might yield an agreement among the tribes and state officials, it wouldn't be easily arrived at.

"It's always an uphill battle when you want to expand gaming to offset revenue losses," said Rep. Stephen Dargan, House chairman of the legislature's Public Safety and Security Committee.  

Falling revenue at both casinos has cut state revenue, calculated as 25 percent of slot machine bets after prize payouts.