Encore is in a high-stakes negotiation with Everett over its $500 million expansion — a price tag that could soar even higher.
The “East of Broadway” extension is slated to include two hotels, a comedy club, poker rooms, sports wagering, a 979-seat theater, a spa, and more.
A source told the Herald “they’ve already bought the steel’ for the massive build-out once they ink a renegotiated local host agreement with Everett.
Mayor Carlo DeMaria is seeking a public safety facility at the Encore Boston Harbor site to help with the estimated 700 to 800 calls a year tied to the mega casino.
“I have been very clear with Wynn representatives throughout our negotiations that any agreement regarding this expansion has to be in the best interests of the residents of Everett,” DeMaria said in an earnings statement obtained by the Herald. “I am glad that business is good at Encore, but I am in the business of reaching the best deal for the residents of my hometown.”
That earnings call stated Encore generated $63 million for the past quarter in earnings before taxes and other business-associated costs. That profit came despite bad weather, the earnings report stated, along with “inflationary pressures” — both the cost of groceries and the 7.25% mortgage rates continues to squeeze everyone, even gamblers.
“There were encouraging pockets of strength in the quarter with record slot handle and strong year-on-year growth in hotel revenue. More recently, demand has remained healthy through April,” the earnings report added.
This all comes as Encore and Everett are digging in on multiple fronts with the push to develop a pro soccer stadium nearby now in the state Legislature. If built, and that’s a big if, the stadium would be a future home for Robert Kraft’s New England Revolution, which now holds games at Gillette in Foxboro.
Boston has objected, saying a stadium near Encore would cause traffic jams in Boston.
Everett’s host agreement now states the casino will “mitigate known impacts,” including public safety and infrastructure. Encore also agreed to pay all “reasonable and direct costs.” A $30 million “community enhancement fee” was paid out to the city in installments to be used right away for “capital improvement projects” near the casino. Other fees were also worked into the deal.
A $5 million “annual community impact fee” was included in the original host agreement — and that goes up by 2.5% for as long as the casino remains viable in Everett, the agreement states. A $20 million annual “PILOT” payment is also made annually, the deal states.
Encore did alert investors that the expansion across from the casino is “on hold … for the time being” pending that host agreement with Everett.
“Though it’s disappointing,” investors were told, Encore has “numerous other development projects globally where we can redirect the capital we intended to deploy in Boston.”
Any expansion here would be connected to the casino by a pedestrian bridge.
