Gaming Commission grants Western Mass $3.2 million in casino mitigation funds
Grants include $200,000 for the Pioneer Valley Planning Commission to do a traffic study on the impact of cars headed through Springfield and neighboring towns headed to MGM Springfield.
Also on the list is $807,000 for Holyoke Community College, Springfield Technical Community College and Springfield Public Schools to continue their WorkReady program in the next year. WorkReady includes English for speakers of other languages, digital literacy and occupational training.
Programs include preparing students for work as a line cook and focusing on jobs in the casino industry, according to the school's application.
Gaming commissioners deferred votes on some grant requests, including traffic improvements in Longmeadow and public safety grant applications, because Commissioner Eileen O'Brien was absent and wishes to review them in detail at the June 17 meeting.
The public safety applications included a $400,000 request from the Hampden County Sheriff's Office for the Western Massachusetts Recovery and Wellness Center.
The drug treatment facility had to move to 155 Mill St. when the casino was built and the state Gaming Commission has supported it with casino revenue for the past 10 years.
But there are questions now as to how connected the congoing expenses are to casino. Sheriff Nicholas Cocchi led commissioners on a tour of the Mill Street facility a year ago.
Also delayed until the June 17 meeting was the Hampden County District Attorney's Office's request for $100,000 to cover personnel costs related to cases that emerge from MGM Springfield. The commission, when it votes, is recommending a smaller $75,000 amount.
State law set up the community mitigation fund when casinos were legalized.
Gaming regulators warn, however, that while the money is available now, current state budget proposals from the governor, House and Senate don't guarantee any of it will be there next year.
Also approved at Tuesday's Gaming Commission meeting were:
Agawam: $321,000 to close funding gaps in the Suffield Street, Rowley Street and Cooper Street intersection project. The project is expected to cost $1.7 million.
Chicopee: $341,000 for surveillance cameras and license plate readers along with supporting infrastructure. Funding will also go to streetscape improvements in Chicopee Center and the city's portion of the ValleyBike Share funding.
East Longmeadow: $347,000 for conceptual planning of the Center Town District, for ambulance and police equipment including defibrillators, radar units and traffic cameras. Of that $347,000, $60,000 will go towards the possible redesign of the infamous East Longmeadow rotary.
Hampden: $75,000 for a tourism marketing plan emphasizing the town's outdoor recreation.
Northampton: $75,000 for a digital marketing campaign.
West Springfield: $518,000 for improved signs in the downtown, EMS response bicycles, police training, emergency dispatch support, a prisoner transport vehicle and increased traffic enforcement.
Wilbraham: $517,000 toward the expected $1.14 million cost of reconstructing the Springfield Street/Stony Hill Road intersection.
Read the original article on MassLive.
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