MGM holds Bridgeport symposium, tribes unimpressed

MGM has held an educational symposium in order to answer questions over its much-mooted casino project for Bridgeport. This however, has been widely denounced by competitors as a shameless publicity stunt designed to increase the visibility of the company’s plans.

A legislative proposal has recently been tabled in Connecticut that if passed would see the opening of a competitive bidding process for a new casino in the state and it seems for the world that the MGM-backed symposium was designed to draw attention to this.
The day held several discussions in which representatives of the commercial operator failed to directly address a number of public concerns in favour of effusive comments as to the potential of a casino in Bridgeport.
The state currently has two tribal-operated ventures and was set to see the construction of a further joint project before it was hamstrung by red tape.
These opponents to MGM have been understandably sceptical about the intentions of the MGM event.
A spokesman for the tribes’ joint venture said an invitation to the symposium had been received, but the respective groups had declined to attend the event.
“Opponents don’t generally take part in each other’s publicity stunts, and that’s exactly what this was,” spokesman Andrew Doba commented.
Whilst it would seem that the competitive bidding amendment is unlikely to find its way through the upcoming legislative session one would assume that MGM is more than happy to turn eyes to Bridgeport whilst the tribal joint project in East Windsor remains a shuttered building site.