By Joe Curtatone 

Three months into its existence the Plainridge slots casino is seeing its revenue decline. The state budget is projecting a potential $22 million shortfall from its original Plainridge projections. That money was supposed to go toward local aid, bolstering our cities and towns. Simply put, we’re not going to get very far if we bank on unreliable revenues. Massachusetts needs to wake up and smell the quicksand.
We had plenty of warning that the gambling industry was in decline, yet many convinced themselves it would build rainbows that lead to pots of gold. Instead our first venture into the oversaturated casino market is posting flagging numbers. Just wait, because somewhere down the road we’re going hear how the state needs to give away even more of those revenues to protect jobs at the Plainridge casino. Some day the state might even need to make capital investments to keep it afloat.
In Springfield, casino operator MGM has scrapped the high-rise hotel tower that was central to it development plans. I’m not really sure why it still has a license given that it’s undertaking a complete rework of its plans. If MGM is going back to the drawing board, then so should the state. The lesson here is we better not count on this industry. We’re early days into our relationship and it’s already underdelivering.