ENCORE BOSTON HARBOR’S opening week brought in more than $16.7 million. The Massachusetts Gaming Commission reported the figure as part of its June revenue report for its three licensed gambling facilities: Plainridge Park Casino, MGM Springfield, and now Encore Boston Harbor.
Encore brought in $7.7 million for table games and $9.1 million for slot machines. The venue is subject to a 25 percent state tax on gaming revenue, which brought in about $4.2 million during its one week of operations in June.
The Everett casino, which opened on June 23, raked in during its first week only about $800,000 less than MGM Springfield did for the entire month.
The state has collected $387 million in total taxes and assessments from all three gaming venues since their respective openings. In June alone, the three generated approximately $50 million in gross gaming revenue, spinning off $15.8 million in taxes.
Large percentages of the tax money go to the state’s education and rainy day funds, transportation infrastructure, and local aid. The Massachusetts Cultural Council, Massachusetts Tourism Funds and others get a smaller chunk.
The Wynn Resorts casino, with an estimated price tag of $2.6 billion, opened last month to much fanfare. Encore did not release statistics for its total number of visits so far, but had predicted roughly 50,000 visitors would attend its opening day. The company plans to eventually employee up to 5,800 people at the casino.
The company’s plans almost came to a halt after the Wall Street Journal published an expose about sexual misconduct allegations against Steve Wynn, then the company’s chairman and CEO. Wynn resigned, and Wynn Resorts eventually paid the Gaming Commission a fine of $35 million as a condition of securing its license.
The new casino along the Mystic River features over 670 hotel rooms, 15 dining venues, and, among other bells and whistles, a $28 million-dollar statue of Popeye (which is for sale).
June also marked MGM Springfield’s 10th month of operation since its opening late August 2018. The Springfield casino had over ten percent less revenue this month than when it launched.
Encore Boston Harbor’s spokeswoman said that as a publicly traded company, Wynn Resorts will comment on the results reported by the Massachusetts Gaming Commission during quarterly earnings calls.