A total of 53 percent of those surveyed said they support locating a casino in New Bedford, and 20 percent are opposed and 27 percent are undecided.
“Since the casino issue was first broached in Massachusetts in 1995, New Bedford residents have consistently and persistently indicated that they are willing to host a resort casino,” center director Clyde Barrow said. “Despite 13 years of contentious debate on the issue, and unfavorable votes by the Massachusetts House of Representatives, a majority of the Whaling City’s residents still want to host a resort casino.”
During referendums in 1995 and 2001, New Bedford voters overwhelmingly indicated their support for a local casino.
Last fall, Governor Deval Patrick, whose campaign manager was David Axelrod, who is also leading Sen. Barack Obama's campaign for the presidency of the U.S., put forth a proposal to license up to three casino resorts in Massachusetts. The plan, he said, would generate badly needed revenue and create new jobs. The House effectively killed the bill, however. The Mashpee Wampanoag tribe has also been in negotiations for the past year to build a casino on land it purchased in Middleboro.
The governor's proposal required that casinos be located and licensed in communities that have approved a binding referendum on hosting such a resort.
“Local support for hosting a resort casino will certainly be an important determinant of where any future casinos are located in Massachusetts,” said Barrow.
The $6,000 UMass-Dartmouth poll was sponsored by Northeast Resorts Group.
Northeast Resorts, along with local partner Peter Picknelly of Peter Pan Bus Lines, has an exclusive development agreement with Mohegan Sun to develop a 152-acre site in Palmer, a site that has been identified as a likely location for a destination resort casino should the legislature approve gaming expansion in Massachusetts.
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