Tribal spokesperson and attorney general find common ground
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| Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal, far right, listens in as tribal spokesperson Bruce MacDonald, left, discusses the benefits of tribal gaming at a forum on casinos at Quinnipiac University in Hamden, Conn. Also listening, in the middle, is Dan O'Connell, secretary of housing and economic development for Massachusetts. Arthur Henick photo |
The setting was a modern conference room at Quinnipiac University in Hamden, Conn. - about a 90-minute drive from the reservation.
The time was a weeknight evening.
The topic was a hot one: casinos in Connecticut and possibly in Massachusetts one day.
The characters were familiar to a small, select group of news junkies up on Indian gaming.
And the news was that the state, represented by longtime tribal critic Attorney General Richard Blumenthal, actually agreed on several positive impacts of tribal gaming with an employee of the Mashantucket Pequot Tribal Nation, Bruce MacDonald.
The March 11 event was called "The Big Gamble: The Costs, Benefits and Coverage of Casinos" and it was co-sponsored by the Connecticut Council on Problem Gambling (CCPG) and the New England
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Town leaders get a sneak peak at the MGM Grand at Foxwoods
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| MGM Grand at Foxwoods General Manager Gillian Murphy tells local leaders about the convention space available at the new hotel casino opening in May. Stephanie Powers photo |
The MGM Grand at Foxwoods opened its doors to town leaders and officials and heads of local chambers of commerce for a special tour of the in-progress facility on March 5. There were over 18 leaders that participated in the tour. The group then split up into two groups, led by Gillian Murphy, the General Manager of MGM, and Chris O'Connell, director of hotel ops for MGM.
The tour started out at beautiful Lake of Isles, the Tribe's award-winning golf facility, where CEO Patricia Irvin welcomed everyone and introduced Gillian Murphy to the crowd.
"It's a wonderful facility and we wanted to give you an early chance to look at MGM," said Irvin. "There's something about seeing it in the building stage that makes you appreciate all the effort and work of the finished product."
Once inside the MGM Grand, the progress of the facility was apparent (More)
2008
