FOUR DAYS AFTER its grand opening, Greater Boston’s first casino won a conditional operating certificate on Thursday morning. The Massachusetts Gaming Commission voted unanimously to award the certificate that will enable Encore Boston Harbor to remain open around the clock for the foreseeable future, offering gamblers a range of 3,151 slot machines and 231 table […]
Andy Metzger
Andy Metzger is currently studying law at Temple University in Philadelphia. Previously, he joined CommonWealth Magazine as a reporter in January 2019. He has covered news in Massachusetts since 2007. For more than six years starting in May 2012 he wrote about state politics and government for the State House News Service. At the News Service, he followed three criminal trials from opening statements to verdicts, tracked bills through the flumes and eddies of the Legislature, and sounded out the governor’s point of view on a host of issues – from the proposed Olympics bid to federal politics.
Before that, Metzger worked at the Chelmsford Independent, The Arlington Advocate, the Somerville Journal and the Cambridge Chronicle, weekly community newspapers that cover an array of local topics. Metzger graduated from UMass Boston in 2006. In addition to his written journalism, Metzger produced a work of illustrated journalism about Gov. Charlie Baker’s record regarding the MBTA. He lives in Somerville and commutes mainly by bicycle.
Posted inTransportation
DeLeo ups T ante, pledges long-term fix
SAYING THE MBTA is “in crisis,” House Speaker Robert DeLeo said the House is willing to work with Gov. Charlie Baker on a short-term fix but remains focused on a long-term plan and the revenue to make it a reality. The Winthrop Democrat, who often sees eye to eye with Baker on financial issues, issued […]
Posted inTransportation
After visit to derailment site, Baker changes course on MBTA
ONE NIGHT LAST week, Gov. Charlie Baker saw for himself the damage dealt to the Red Line’s signal system when a train went off the rails at the JFK/UMass Station and smashed into three sheds containing electrical equipment along the tracks. Baker said the visit, which he recalls happened at around 9 p.m. last Thursday, […]
Posted inGambling
Boston reports moderate traffic from Encore opening
A BIG CROWD turned out for the opening of Encore Boston Harbor on Sunday, but there is no official word yet on how attendance matched up against the casino’s prediction of roughly 50,000 visitors. At noon Sunday, which was about two hours after the doors to the 24/7 gambling establishment opened to the public for […]
Posted inEconomy
Was Stop & Shop strike a turning point?
THE STOP & SHOP STRIKE earlier this year cost the company about $100 million and resulted in a contract the workers could agree to, but whether the power on display at Bay State grocery stores was an aberration or a sign of resurgent force in private sector labor is an open question. For decades, private […]
Posted inGambling
Wynn Resorts formally opens for business
WITH AN AUDACIOUS midmorning fireworks display, an emotional speech from the mayor of Everett, and a crowd of thousands lined up in the hot sun, Encore Boston Harbor threw open its doors to the public on Sunday. In his speech Sunday morning, Everett Mayor Carlo DeMaria referenced the bruising regulatory and legal challenges that Wynn […]
Posted inTransportation
Red Line delays to last through summer
IT WILL BE a summer of frustratingly long commutes for Red Line riders. Ten days after a Red Line train derailed and crashed into three bungalows of signal equipment, MBTA officials announced it would take at least another 10 weeks of work until subway service returns to normal. Workers removed the 50-year-old train from the […]
Posted inPolitics
Wu plans to press fare issue in July 1 system-wide canvass
LEANING INTO THE political potential of MBTA rider outrage, Boston City Councilor Michelle Wu plans to organize volunteers to canvass straphangers on July 1, the day a roughly 6 percent fare hike takes effect. The at-large councilor, who opposes the upcoming fare hike and has suggested making the whole T free to ride, hopes to […]
Posted inTransportation
Massport narrows CEO field to 2
This story has been updated. THE MASSACHUSETTS PORT AUTHORITY will decide between finalists Brian Golden and Lisa Wieland as the next chief executive of the quasi-public agency that oversees three airports, Boston seaports, and a substantial real estate portfolio. A former state representative from Boston, Golden has been chief executive of the Boston Planning and […]
Posted inEnvironment
House aims to pass Greenworks bill this summer
GOV. CHARLIE BAKER’S bill to fund climate change adaptation would allow the state to assist private property owners and it includes a revenue source – two features that are not included in the so-called Greenworks bill backed by House Speaker Robert DeLeo, which is on track for a floor vote in the next couple months. […]