LETTER: Damage Control for Casino Border Towns

If there is a strategy locally for fighting the East Windsor casino, it's not apparent. Our elected officials, both state and local in Enfield, Suffield and Windsor Locks, appear to be rolling over.

The General Assembly and governor are likely to approve a casino in East Windsor. That means the only thing left is to do is to control the damage.

I'd rather not see this casino. They are bad deals economically and they will bring ruin to some families. Casinos are a public health menace. But these arguments are being disregarded in the State House. Let’s now discuss how we can ensure the safety of our residents in this new era.

Minimally, the towns will need more money for their police departments. East Windsor is taken care of. It will get $8.5 million annually from the casino and it has plans to hire more police personnel and buy more equipment.

This casino will draw people from a wide area. They will cross the bridge into Windsor Locks and travel on local roads. Suffield may see a lot more Western Mass. traffic because many people, I suspect, won’t go to downtown Springfield. Enfield, a regional shopping center, will see more traffic on roads that today can barely handle the traffic they get.

We know from a 2009 state-sponsored study on the impact of the tribal casinos that DUI arrests will rise. This means Enfield, Windsor Locks and Suffield will need more police resources to counter this threat.

The East Windsor casino is expected to be a 24 x 7 operation. People will leave at all hours and even if they don’t drink, they may be too tired to drive. That’s a real risk. Our problem is compounded by the MGM casino in Springfield. The odds of death and injury from drunk drivers in our towns will be greater than in other towns. How do we respond?

Enfield, Suffield and Windsor Locks officials know -- if they want to protect their residents -- that the East Windsor casino will burden local budgets.

Here’s a recommendation: Our local elected officials, state and local, should hold a joint press conference and demand increased public safety funding in any casino bill. The state media has ignore the local consequences. We are on our own in these towns, so a more aggressive and visible posture is needed.

If the officials of Enfield, Windsor Locks and Suffield do not seek funding guarantees upfront, they are not going to get them later. That’s Government 101.

Our communities should insist on traffic and economic studies as well as the creation of a joint-town working group to coordinate the casino response. It’s just ridiculous that East Windsor will be the only town to have a properly funded police department. The casino is a regional facility.

Our local elected officials will never be in a stronger position than they are today. Whether they support or oppose the casino, they should at least agree on proper funding levels to counter its problems.

If Enfield, Windsor Locks and Suffield officials don’t take swift action, they will only compound the risk that our residents face.

Patrick Thibodeau
Enfield

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