The timing of the talks seems unusual, after the Wynn company wrapped up eight years of salesmanship, design, competition, environmental cleanup, and construction to bring the Encore to the eve of its opening. Along the way, there have been lawsuits, resignations, and the long investigation by state regulators into the accusations against Steve Wynn. Encore would be the first and, by law, the only Las Vegas-style casino in Greater Boston, the most lucrative casino market in the state.
“I think probably Wynn Resorts wants to wash its hands of Massachusetts and move on,” said Clyde Barrow, a casino specialist at the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley and former UMass professor.
MGM holds the sole resort casino license for Western Massachusetts, and last August opened the MGM Springfield resort. It was everything the gaming commission hoped it would be — a casino and entertainment center deftly integrated into the city’s long-moribund downtown, providing thousands of jobs and new revenue to the city, neighboring municipalities, and the state.
Under Massachusetts law, no company can hold more than one casino license, which makes an MGM play for Encore Boston Harbor a tricky bank shot. The company would have to relinquish its Western Massachusetts license and presumably sell MGM Springfield, a project that took years to build, cost about $960 million, but so far has fallen short of projections in gambling revenue.
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