Tagged: springfield

There will be no casino referendum in Springfield on June 25th , the same day voters  head to the polls in Massachusetts for the special Senate election.

Of the four companies competing for the lone casino license available in western Massachusetts, one has stood out when it comes to marketing.  MGM Resorts International, which hopes to build a casino in downtown Springfield, has spent hundreds of thousands of dollars on advertising.

The  U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development has awarded more than $21 million to the city of Springfield Massachusetts to help it recover from the June 2011 tornado. 

   Springfield Mayor Domenic Sarno said the money will fund specific projects detailed in the tornado recovery master plan the city produced last year.

Efforts by residents of a low- income housing cooperative in Springfield, Massachusetts to recover  from the June 2011 tornado have been dealt another setback.  The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development , which funded the  90- unit complex nearly 40 years ago, is weighing foreclosure.

The city of Springfield is seeking an exception to Proposition 2 ½ , the Massachusetts property tax cap law, when it comes to casinos.

   An $800 million resort casino could mean tens of millions of dollars annually in additional property taxes for Springfield.  But Mayor Domenic Sarno said the city will not get the full financial benefits from a casino development unless a change is made to Prop 2 ½.