“Taunton Casino’s Exciting Welcome Center Launches with Live Gaming Thrills!”

TAUNTON — The Welcome Center situated on the lands overseen by the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe for the prospective use of First Light Resort & Casino is now accessible to the public.

This was the official announcement from representatives of the Tribe during their appearance before the Taunton City Council on Tuesday, Jan. 14, offering an in-person update concerning the future development of that property.

“It has been a lengthy journey for the Tribe and this city,” remarked Brian Weeden, chair of the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe, reassuring the City Council that they “come here with the best of intentions” regarding transparency with the community, representing Tribal interests, and fulfilling commitments made.

Welcome Center highlights tribe’s heritage and ancestral territory

Kevin Jones, the chief strategy officer and legal officer for Genting Americas, Inc., was also in attendance. Genting is a worldwide destination resort operator and “development partner” with the Tribe concerning the First Light Resort & Casino, according to a Tribal representative.

Jones, who stated that Genting would oversee the First Light casino, indicated that the approximately 2,000-square-foot Welcome Center is designed to educate and inform the public about the Tribe’s history and its ties to its ancestral territories, including the land in Taunton that will be developed.

Welcome Center features a variety of gaming machines

Also featured within the Welcome Center is a “sampling,” mentioned Jones, of the gaming options that visitors can anticipate at First Light, with 10 gaming machines available for use.

These machines will reward winners, as confirmed by Jones.

Additionally, all revenues generated from the machines will be directed towards charitable organizations, including Homes for our Troops and the Ryan Hendricks Memorial Scholarship Fund, which honors a Mashpee Wampanoag adolescent who tragically passed away in a car accident in 2022.

Carlton Hendricks, vice chair of the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe, mentioned that both staff and security are present at the Welcome Center, and discussions regarding the Welcome Center’s opening have taken place with the mayor’s office, as well as Taunton Police and Fire concerning emergency services.

Welcome Center operational hours

Currently, the Welcome Center is operational from Tuesday to Saturday between 10 a.m. and 5 p.m., with a grand opening scheduled for Jan. 26.

The Gazette visited the Welcome Center, located off Stevens Street, across from the Revolutionary Road entrance to Liberty & Union Industrial Park. As of the time of this writing, the area was still undergoing work, with none of the planned displays, artifacts, and photographs displayed yet.

Charles Foster, treasurer for the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe, informed the Gazette that there will be a greeter, a member of the Tribe, serving as a historian to share the Tribe’s history with guests and discuss the exhibits and artifacts that will soon be part of the Welcome Center.

The gaming machines are fully functional and available to those aged 21 and older.

Foster added that, at the time of this writing, they have already welcomed many visitors, particularly from East Taunton, who have come to the Welcome Center, engaged with the machines, and “have been very warm and inviting.”

Initial phase towards resort and casino

Officials from the Tribe indicated that the Welcome Center is a precursor to the long-awaited development of a resort and casino.

“The tribe is asserting its sovereignty and marking its territory,” Hendricks stated.

When will the casino be built and operational?

City council members inquired with Tribal officials about a schedule for the casino’s development but did not receive concrete responses.

Jones mentioned that presently the Tribe and First Light are undergoing a fresh design phase for the venture, which, he remarked, “we are striving immensely” to finalize swiftly. He also noted that he anticipates more details regarding the new design will be shared with the public “in the upcoming months.”

Years of judicial obstacles

The Tribe was compelled to abandon developmental projects in 2016 following a lawsuit from neighbors in East Taunton questioning the legitimacy of the land being placed into trust by the U.S. Department of the Interior.

After numerous rulings and appeals influenced by varying presidential administrations, a judge from the U.S. District Court sided with the Department of the Interior in February 2023, and a final ruling in October 2023 from the U.S. First Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the District Court’s decision.

The Tribe’s final legal triumph occurred in April 2024 when the U.S. Supreme Court opted not to hear a petition to overturn the prior ruling.

“It was agonizing for the Tribe to halt progress,” Jones stated regarding the cessation of the development on the land, adding that the prolonged legal confrontations cost the Tribe millions, led to a loss of essential funding for First Light, and resulted in accruing bills they are still addressing.

Jones also remarked that it necessitated the Tribe and his firm to reconsider the design and offerings of the casino and resort in light of the evolving landscape and increased gambling alternatives in Massachusetts and Rhode Island during the hiatus of First Light.

Revising the city’s agreement with the Tribe

A significant topic of discussion among City Council members was the city’s existing Intergovernmental Agreement (IGA) with the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe.

Established in 2012, the IGA contains crucial stipulations and promises from the Tribe, such as tax revenue amounts and payments the city will receive concerning First Light’s operations in Taunton, agreements and expenses associated with infrastructure expansion and access to the city’s water, sewer, and electrical services, the financing and implementation of traffic alleviation strategies in that vicinity, and the funding of compulsive gambling and addiction resources for affected individuals.

Council members expressed a desire to renegotiate the agreement due to the significant duration that has passed without any advancements or developments.

“The gaming landscape has transformed over the past 12 years. Your initial vision may not be feasible,” stated City Councilor David Pottier, supporting a new IGA as “I don’t believe the current IGA is practical.”

City Councilor Phillip Duarte concurred, stating, “The IGA must be renegotiated based on reasonable anticipations in today’s reality.”

During the meeting, Tribal officials did not respond to this request.

Tribe owes city $2.35 million

The Tribe has an outstanding balance of approximately $2.35 million as part of its payment in Lieu of Taxes (PILOT) Agreement with the city, which was established with the IGA. This arrangement — formed with sovereign entities like the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe, or private tax-exempt entities such as universities and churches — mandates payments for services like roads and public utilities.

As per city officials, the Tribe is currently behind on four years of payments, with the last payment recorded in 2020.

City Councilor Christopher Coute expressed understanding of “the tribe has incurred considerable debt” over the years, yet he hopes the Tribe “prioritizes the PILOT payments” presently due, given that the city is the primary collaborator in this initiative.

Jones informed the Council that “the Tribe is dedicated to ensuring those payments are addressed as swiftly as possible.”

Mayor Shaunna O’Connell conveyed to the Council and the audience that her administration has been engaging in regular discussions with Tribal representatives about “how we’re going to secure payment” and described the dialogues as constructive.

She mentioned that a “memorandum of agreement” is likely to be drafted soon, pending approval from both the city Council and the Tribe, outlining the terms and timeline for making those overdue payments.