A proposed Tiverton casino could generate more than $120 million in economic activity, according to an impact report commissioned by Twin River Management Group, the company asking voters to say ‘yes’ to the Tiverton casino.
The study was conducted by New Jersey-based Spectrum Gaming Group, a casino industry consulting and research company.
Though Twin River Management group ordered and paid for the study spokeswoman Patti Doyle said she believes the findings are reliable.
“It doesn’t behoove us to be putting out information either for ourselves or the voters that we can’t we can’t stand behind and we don’t believe is accurate, and so we always err on the side of being slightly conservative,” said Doyle. “We do feel confident that the numbers are real.”
The report finds that even if a proposed casino in neighboring Taunton Massachusetts comes to fruition, the Tiverton facility would still create about 1,700 new jobs and $120 million in economic activity. The casino proposal for Taunton is currently working its way through the Massachusetts courts.
Twin River Management Group wants to transfer an existing gaming license from Newport Grand to a brand new, still-to-be-built facility in Tiverton. Doyle touted the numbers in the report as proof that a Tiverton casino would be more profitable than Newport Grand.
“When you consider right now that Newport Grand contributes $27 million to the state on an annual basis, when we look at the proposed Tiverton Casino, in its first full year of operations we would be at approximately $50 million in revenue to the state,” said Doyle.
If approved by voters, the Tiverton casino would offer both slots and table games. A grassroots group of residents and local clergy oppose the Tiverton casino. They have cited concerns about the impact the facility would have on the quality of life in Tiverton, and some have doubts about the longevity of the estimated revenue gains as new casinos come online in Massachusetts.
To move forward, the proposal must gain approval this November from voters in Rhode Island and Tiverton.