EVEN AS WYNN RESORTS is fighting to retain its Massachusetts casino license, the cost of the Everett project keeps on rising.
At a hearing before the Massachusetts Gaming Commission on Friday, Wynn Resorts officials said the expected price tag of the project was now $2.5 billion. That means the cost has increased another $100 million since February 2017, when the price tag increased $300 million to $2.4 billion. At the time, company officials indicated there would be no more increases.
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About Bruce Mohl
Bruce Mohl is the editor of CommonWealth magazine. Bruce came to CommonWealth from the Boston Globe, where he spent nearly 30 years in a wide variety of positions covering business and politics. He covered the Massachusetts State House and served as the Globe’s State House bureau chief in the late 1980s. He also reported for the Globe’s Spotlight Team, winning a Loeb award in 1992 for coverage of conflicts of interest in the state’s pension system. He served as the Globe’s political editor in 1994 and went on to cover consumer issues for the newspaper. At CommonWealth, Bruce helped launch the magazine’s website and has written about a wide range of issues with a special focus on politics, tax policy, energy, and gambling. Bruce is a graduate of Ohio Wesleyan University and the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University. He lives in Dorchester.
About Bruce Mohl
Bruce Mohl is the editor of CommonWealth magazine. Bruce came to CommonWealth from the Boston Globe, where he spent nearly 30 years in a wide variety of positions covering business and politics. He covered the Massachusetts State House and served as the Globe’s State House bureau chief in the late 1980s. He also reported for the Globe’s Spotlight Team, winning a Loeb award in 1992 for coverage of conflicts of interest in the state’s pension system. He served as the Globe’s political editor in 1994 and went on to cover consumer issues for the newspaper. At CommonWealth, Bruce helped launch the magazine’s website and has written about a wide range of issues with a special focus on politics, tax policy, energy, and gambling. Bruce is a graduate of Ohio Wesleyan University and the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University. He lives in Dorchester.
Robert DeSalvio, president of the Everett casino, said the new price tag was disclosed in a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The company’s annual report, filed on February 18, stated matter-of-factly that the total project budget, including gaming license fees, construction costs, capitalized interest, pre-opening expenses, and land costs, “is estimated to be approximately $2.5 billion.”
It was unclear what prompted the price increase. DeSalvio said one change was the decision to sharply reduce luxury retail space and expand the amount of room devoted to conventions and meetings. Other Wynn officials said they believed the cleanup of the heavily polluted site on the Mystic River cost more than expected.
The annual report said $1.13 billion had been spent on the Everett project as of December 31. Wynn Resorts held a topping-off ceremony for the project on Friday with the 1,600 construction building the casino/hotel. The casino, the largest private investment in Massachusetts, is expected to open for business in mid-2019.
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