Consultants Hired for Casino Work, Review Timeline Compressed

Operating under a timeline squeezed by the state Gaming Commission, Milford Selectmen were told Monday that a host agreement with a proposed casino developer would have to be completed by the end of August to meet the new deadlines.

But the town's attorney handling the casino review said it could be done.

"The timeline is tight, but I do think it's doable," said Kimberly Copp, a partner with the law firm Shefsky & Froelich.

In an update for the board, she said the law firm had hired several consultants to work on the town's behalf. They include:

• HR&A Advisors, of New York, NY, mitigation consultant. HR&A will conduct a study of the fiscal impact of the project on the town. This would include impacts on town services, such as fire, schools, police, etc., as well as a comprehensive economic impact study. This would determine job projections, spending estimates and compensation, as well as impacts on existing businesses in Milford.

• Tighe & Bond, of Middletown, CT, traffic and utility consultant. Tighe & Bond would assist the town in reviewing traffic impacts of the project, and some utility impacts, including electrical line relocation. Water and sewer impacts would be considered by another consultant.

• Tata & Howard, of Marlborough. Consultant for sewer utility requirements.

• Beals and Thomas, Southborough, environmental consultant. Beals and Thomas would advise Milford on the environmental impacts of the development, and assist with permitting processes.

• Financial consultant, not yet hired. The financial consultant would project the amount of revenue that could be expected from gaming activities on the site, as well as analyze the financing of the project.

Foxwoods Massachusetts, which hopes to build a $1 billion resort casino in Milford, will pay for the town consultants to review the impact of its proposed development. "They gave us no pushback," Copp said, of Foxwoods executives. "They will certainly pay for these expenses."

Milford Selectmen were told the developer has hired its own consultants and would be spending $2 to $3 million over the next several months to design the facility and detail infrastructure needs. Within weeks, Copp said, she would expect the casino developer will have a specific proposal for the town to examine, including a project design, its location on the property, the access, and programming features including restaurants and hotel rooms.

The proposed access to the casino site would be a new interchange on I-495 connecting to Route 16, and a public access road from the Route 109 ramps that would avoid local roads, according to an infrastructure summary prepared for Foxwoods. This is a project that would require approval from the state DOT, as well as the Federal Highway Administration.

In response, selectmen said they had concerns about the schedule for review.

Two communities in the state have already reached host agreements with casino developers, including in Everett, where the proposal would compete with the Milford location for the available state casino license for greater Boston.

Selectman Dino DeBartolomeis said he spoke to the Massachusetts Gaming Commission ombudsman about the timeline set by the state for final casino applications. "I'd like to see it extended," DeBartolomeis said. "... More time is better. I still don't know if it's good or bad. I want the information so I can be educated."