Massachusetts AG urges state to deny permit to Wynn Resorts

Wynn Resorts faces another hurdle as Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey has urged state environmental officials to deny a permit for Wynn’s $1.7b casino project at the Everett waterfront.

Healey sent a 15-page letter to Energy and Environmental Affairs Secretary Matthew Beaton on Friday, stating that Wynn should not get a permit until it provides a “long-term traffic solution” to address the projected traffic that will impact the surrounding areas once the its casino-resort is launched.

“If the casino is built without a long term plan in place for Rutherford Avenue and Sullivan Square, we simply may never solve the traffic problem,” said Healey. “This dangerous and congested set of roadways may be unfamiliar to many state residents, but it serves as a major regional transit hub and access point.”

Wynn needs the state certificate to break ground on the project, which would be Massachusetts’ largest casino project and one of the largest private developments in the state when it opens in 2018. Wynn has allotted more than $300m for transportation and road infrastructure improvements with Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA).