Behind the Times

Aren’t we lucky

Posted on August 14, 2007 by Michael Ballway
Filed Under Elsewhere, Mike's posts |

Trying to explain to someone from Eastern Mass., a few weeks ago, where exactly I work, I said: “Draw a line from Worcester to Marlborough, then to Fitchburg, and back to Worcester. Right in the middle of that triangle, that’s Clinton and Lancaster.”

Right in the middle of three casinos, if all the plans on the table go through (which they won’t), worries Lance over at No Drumlins. We all knew Marlborough was keen to put a casino off I-495, but I suppose I was asleep at the wheel and missed the memo that Worcester (city-owned land off Route 146) and Fitchburg (Rep. DiNatale doesn’t know where, and honestly, anywhere you put it would wreck Route 2) were in on it too.

So it’s one thing when Middleborough — where? — votes for one, but quite another when there’s one (or three) on our doorstep. Just like Lakeville and Plymouth are saying now, any casino will have spillover effects on not only its host town, but the neighbors, too … and maybe their neighbors (Berlin … Clinton? Leominster … Lancaster?) .

Of course, the other thing this brings to my mind is the old WTAG proposal — which I heard the turncoat Hank Stoltz bring up again on WCRN this morning — that Worcester can kill two birds with one stone by turning the airport into one giant casino and flying the high rollers in. On fog-free days, of course.