MGM said redesigning the hotel will save about $50 to $75 million, but the overall project cost has gone up by $150 million.
MGM continues to defend design changes for its Springfield casino, this time before the Massachusetts Gaming Commission, which held a public meeting in the city Thursday.
MGM officials reiterated much of what they said at a public forum last month -- that, while the company filed an environmental report proposing 14 percent less square footage, the actual reduction is closer to 10 percent. Much of that is considered "back of the house" -- like the employee dining room and loading dock -- and not entertainment or gambling space.
"We think this project is remarkably similar, and in fact, better," said MGM Springfield President Mike Mathis.
Mathis said design changes in the casino itself, like fewer slot machines, come down to how millennials gamble.
"Millennials find slots boring," Mathis said. "I'm not a slot guy, so I sort of empathize with them. But there's more interest in table energy, it's more communal and higher energy is their perception."
Mathis addressed one of the more controversial aspects of the design change -- going from a 25-story hotel tower to a six-story building. He claimed that will fit better with the aesthetics of the city, while being more efficient.
"Just because a design review is cost driven, doesn't mean what results from it is a bad design," he said. "And we feel really strongly that the new low-rise hotel is a better design."
Several of the commissioners said they understood the design changes might be for the better, but wanted more information about how the company got there.
"I was expecting a little more detail to come from you in the area of cost," said Commissioner Enrique Zuniga. "You've collapsed a lot of numbers here."
Commission Chair Steve Crosby said he was persuaded that the heart of the project remains unchanged, but said he struggled with some of the numbers. For instance, MGM said redesigning the hotel will save about $50 to $75 million, and yet the overall project cost has gone up -- by $150 million.
"Give us some particulars that show us -- or there was a colossal budgeting error, I can live with that too," he said. "But the numbers are just so big, they don't make sense to me."
MGM's Mathis blamed much of the new costs on a longer timeline -- the casino opening has moved back more than a year to 2018. And he promised to get the commissioners more details.
In a public hearing after the MGM presentation, the panel heard from several unhappy Springfield residents. One was City Council President Mike Fenton, who urged the commission to reject MGM's design changes until the city can negotiate a better deal.
"The fact of the matter remains that we have a legally binding contract with this entity, and in that contract, it calls for a high-rise tower and other amenities that are promised," Fenton said.
Fenton said he'd like MGM to look at expanding the market rate apartments, or redesigning the skyline in some other way.
Council Vice President Orlando Ramos also objected to the changes, saying he'd counted on the economic potential of bringing a new high-rise to the city. His colleague, councilor Tim Rooke, sided with MGM. Rooke cares less about having a tall hotel than having visitors on the streets.
"Right now, at 4:30 [in the afternoon], you can throw bowling ball down Main Street, you're not going to hit anybody," he said. "They're anticipating eight million visitors a year. That's going to be a boost for every small business downtown."
The City Council, the mayor, and the state gaming commission get a say on whether MGM can move forward.
This report was originally published by New England Public Radio (NEPR.net).
