Saturday, February 03, 2007

The poll, conducted by the Center for Policy Analysis at the University of
Massachusetts Dartmouth, found 57 percent of respondents support the
authorization of a resort casino, 30 percent are opposed and 14 percent are
undecided. The poll and behavioral survey of 1,041 Massachusetts residents
was conducted between September and November last year, according to the
CFPA. When asked to rate a location for a casino, residents statewide
favored western Massachusetts, Boston and the New Bedford/Fall River region,
in that order, as preferred sites. They ranked Cape Cod and the Plymouth
area as the least desirable locations for a casino, the CFPA said in a
statement. "Support for casino gambling in Massachusetts runs deep through
virtually every region, group and socio-economic strata," said Dr. Clyde W.
Barrow, the CFPA's director. "Massachusetts residents strongly believe it is
time the commonwealth authorize a casino to compete with Connecticut for the
gambling, entertainment and tourism dollars associated with Foxwoods and
Mohegan Sun." Residents also rated the potential fiscal and economic
benefits of a casino above their concern over any potential social costs,
with 76 percent agreeing that a casino will generate new tax revenues for
the state, 69 percent believing it will spawn new job creation for
Massachusetts residents, 67 percent citing its benefits to increased
tourism, 62 percent believing a casino will recapture gambling monies being
lost to other states, such as Connecticut and Rhode Island, and 56 percent
saying it will stimulate economic development, according to the CFPA.
Residents did, however, express concerns that a casino could increase
political corruption. Political corruption was cited as a concern for 44
percent of respondents while gambling addiction in the state was a concern
for 48 percent. The survey results echo the findings of a Boston Business
Journal Business Pulse online survey conducted in early January. 65 percent
of BBJ readers who took the survey said they favored legalized gambling in
Massachusetts.