Boosters for the Wynn casino in Everett have found themselves in the awkward position of having to make nice with one of their most vocal former opponents — former Chelsea City Manager Jay Ash, who backed the defeated Mohegan Sun proposal in Revere and now serves as Gov. Charlie Baker's Secretary of Housing and Economic Development.
Ash, who took office with Baker last week, battled Wynn tooth and nail in arbitration over millions in impact payments and harshly criticized Wynn publicly for its dealings with Chelsea. Both sides now say it's all water under the bridge.
"I butted heads with them, but I've always been in support of expanded gambling in Massachusetts," Ash told the Herald. "I thought Suffolk Downs was the place that it should be, but this is not inconsistent at all with where I've been. And now, as incoming secretary of the commonwealth, anyone who wants to spend $1.8 billion or more is a group that I want to get know."
Ash attended a celebration last week at Everett City Hall to mark Wynn closing on its Mystic River site, and received glowing words and hearty congratulations from the dais by Wynn and city officials. Wynn spokesman Michael Weaver said the company has "absolutely no concerns about working with Secretary Ash."
"We are looking forward to working with him and believe he will be helpful and supportive as we move forward to create jobs and generate incremental tax revenue for the commonwealth," Weaver said.
Just a year ago, Ash was fretting publicly that he was "befuddled and incensed" with Wynn after the company did not name Chelsea a surrounding community to its casino, a seeming jab for his Mohegan support. The lack of designation deprived Chelsea of the right to a mitigation agreement like the one it cut with Mohegan worth $2.5 million a year.
At the time, Wynn said Chelsea would not be negatively impacted by its casino despite its proximity. Wynn eventually agreed to grant Chelsea the status, but the sides couldn't reach a deal. They then entered arbitration, where Ash drove a hard bargain. Wynn, for instance, proposed paying Chelsea a $300,000 upfront fee for traffic improvements, while Ash asked for $1.55 million. The arbitrator sided with Wynn.
Ash said he remains concerned about traffic impacts from the Wynn project, which will need a bevy of state permits for road modifications and environmental cleanup.
"I think there's still a lot of questions we heard about traffic, and I think that all of the parties recognize that traffic needs to be dealt with, and there are environmental issues that need to be dealt with," Ash said. "We're ready to work with Wynn provided that they can get these things resolved."
Everett Mayor Carlo DeMaria said he is "excited" at Ash's appointment and that the two have "been friends for a long time." He said Ash sent encouraging signals after Mohegan lost the license race to Wynn and a repeal of the state's casino law was on the ballot.
"He was on that side of the Suffolk Downs group and then when they were no longer successful he actually worked very hard on the 'No on 3' campaign," DeMaria said. "He always saw it the way I saw it."
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