Nearby cities on the fence about casino

EASTHAMPTON, Mass. (WWLP) - Easthampton is one of the neighbor communities bracing for the possible impact of a casino being built in Holyoke.

All it takes is a 15 minute ride, to get you to Easthampton from Holyoke's Mountain Park.  The two cities share the Mt. Tom range.  They also have opinions about Mayor Alex Morse's flip-flop, in favor of bringing gaming to Holyoke.

“The idea that he campaigned to not put up a casino, and in such a short time switched; I think that really hurts the public,” said Daniel Kinsey of Easthampton.

Kinsey says Morse’s lack of public service experience is to blame for his recent change of heart.  Plans to bring a casino to the 60-acre Mountain Park is one of two proposals recently eyed by Morse, who shot down Paper City Development's Wyckoff plan earlier this year. 

Wyckoff is less than three miles south from Mountain Park.  Under Paper City's proposal, Easthampton was one of the eight surrounding communities that would have benefited from a revenue sharing plan.  But Morse says Mountain Park's proposal is more than just gaming.  Others say it boils down to money.

“If I was him I'd be confused as well because I'm sure lots of people came to him with a good proposal. And knowing or not knowing how much money would be coming to him and other places you never know,” said Sarah Messier of Easthampton, on Union Street Wednesday morning. 

However, Easthampton's mayor says it's too early to tell what kind of impact a Holyoke casino could have on his city. He says many questions still need answers, one of those being how to best streamline traffic getting on and off Interstate 91.

“Rt. 141 is a pretty significant commuter corridor to Route 91 South. In the morning the traffic is moving south to go to work and it creates a fairly long line of traffic, that actually reaches the Log Cabin restaurant,” said Mayor Michael Tautznik inside his Payson Avenue office. 

Tautznik told 22News that bottleneck needs to be addressed before any increase in traffic. He plans to meet with the businessman behind the Mountain Park proposal, Eric Suher, on Thursday. 

Suher told 22News he received a letter outlining the public process from Morse, Wednesday morning, and is working on a public presentation. 

Suher says he plans to meet the state's January 15th application deadline.