Date Posted: September 16, 2024, 02:23h.
Last updated on: September 16, 2024, 02:39h.
The City of Boston is looking for a research partner to conduct an institutional review on the impact of a commercial casino in Everett on youth.
Wynn Resorts invested $2.6 billion in building an integrated resort casino in Everett. Encore Boston Harbor opened in June 2019 and has become the top revenue-earning casino in the commonwealth.
Boston city officials want to analyze how the casino has affected youth in Charlestown, the oldest neighborhood in Boston situated on a peninsula north of the Charles River and south of the Mystic River separating Boston from Everett.
Boston’s deadline for proposals (RFP) is 11:59 pm EST this Wednesday, September 18. The city’s Office of Human Services will review submissions and choose a vendor for the review. The selected bidder will be compensated up to $177K for the contract running from Oct. 15, 2024, to Oct. 15, 2025.
Focus of the Study
Jose Masso, chief of the Human Services Office, states that the casino study will focus on determining how Encore Boston Harbor has influenced young people’s perception of and interest in gambling. The investigation will also explore the attitudes of young people, aged 14-25, towards the Wynn complex.
The contracted researchers will assess the community elements in place to educate young people about the risks of gambling and put in protective measures to ensure that youth do not gamble before they are legally allowed to participate.
A 2022 study by the Massachusetts Gaming Commission (MGC) found that the state’s allowance of three casinos has normalized gambling for younger individuals. The Charlestown investigation aims to confirm these findings and develop strategies to prevent increased rates of problem gambling due to normalization.
The RFP asks in the project summary, “What role can the City play in protecting youth from being harmed or exploited by gambling?”
Research has shown that the younger the age at which a person first gambles, the more severe their gambling problems tend to be later in life, according to a report by the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health in March 2023.
Prevalence of Gambling
Commercial casinos were once concentrated in Nevada and Atlantic City, but now more than half of the adult population in the Northeast lives within 25 miles of a casino.
Experts in social science suggest that accessibility, availability, and acceptability are ecological predictors of gambling participation. A study by Paulette O’Gilvie from Capella University’s Department of Human Services in 2022 indicated that urban casinos like Encore Boston Harbor could potentially cause more harm than good.
According to O’Gilvie’s report, titled “The Impact of Casino Proximity on Northeast Urban Communities,” urban casinos are usually situated in low socio-economic neighborhoods with existing gambling cultures. While economic benefits are promised before the adoption of casinos, the actual benefits in urban areas are limited, and increased accessibility to urban casinos due to proximity could lead to higher rates of gambling-related issues.
Boston’s RFP for the Encore study notes that most patrons visiting the Wynn casino come from nearby communities, including Charlestown.
The RFP concludes, “As the casino strives to enhance its appeal and accessibility, the potential impact on young individuals remains uncertain.”