Several Lynn leaders were on hand in Revere on Friday morning to join municipal leaders from across the region in support of the Mohegan Sun casino proposal in Revere.
Included in Lynn’s contingent were Mayor Judith Flanagan Kennedy, EDIC Director James Cowdell, State Rep. Bob Fennell, State Sen. Tom McGee and members from the Lynn Area Chamber of Commerce.
The meeting was conceived by Revere Mayor Dan Rizzo, Mohegan Project Manager Pete Schultz and Revere Economic Development Director John Festa.
Also on hand was North Shore Chamber leaders and elected officials from Winthrop, Melrose, Chelsea, and Saugus.
“We don’t want to wait until a licensed is granted to start talking about ways we can do things together to make this project help elevate the region,” said Rizzo.
Lynn Mayor Kennedy said she had high hopes that the casino project in Revere would extend to businesses in Lynn, contribute to the downtown revival and enhance the Lynn Auditorium.
“We think by having Mohegan Sun but four miles down the road, we’ll be getting more people into our restaurants and into our revived downtown district,” said Kennedy. “We think the Rewards Program will be key. We have the new Lynn Auditorium and we have great shows there. Mohegan Sun patrons can use their rewards points to come to our venue and see a show. We’ve been backing Mohegan Sun from day one on this. We believe it will be successful for Revere and for Lynn as well.”
She also noted that North Shore Community College (NSCC) in Lynn would be at the center of training many of the local casino workers.
“The casino will be needing skilled workers, particularly within the gaming positions and we see it as an opportunity to have them train in our City, whether its for gaming positions or management positions.”
Kennedy also mentioned several Lynn businesses that she believed would be great vendors for the casino, including Kettle Cuisine.
“We’re already doing business with Kettle and will continue,” said Mohegan purchasing official Paul Supernant.