Somerville Gives Up Wynn Casino Fight

Photo via AP

Pugnacious Somerville Mayor Joe Curtatone has thrown in the towel in his long fight to block the forthcoming Wynn Resorts casino along the Mystic River.

Curtatone’s administration announced Monday that it would drop all remaining court challenges, including its appeal of the permit granted by the state Department of Environmental Protection.

“The City of Somerville successfully resolved a number of our community’s core concerns regarding the Wynn casino project,” Curtatone said in a statement. “For this reason, we will not pursue further appeal of the license via the courts.

In return, Curtatone hopes Wynn will work with the city in good faith to help address its traffic and health concerns arising from the $2 billion project.

“I want to be clear, our appeal was never about stopping the casino but rather about our civic duty to protect the health, safety, and quality of life of our residents,” Curtatone said.

Somerville spent nearly $400,000 fighting the so-called Wynn Boston Harbor casino last fiscal year alone, Boston.com reports. The state granted Wynn the sole gaming license in the Boston area in 2014, and while Boston Mayor Marty Walsh has since called a truce with Wynn, Curtatone continued the fight.

“While we did not get everything we asked for, the appeal did yield significant and meaningful results for our residents, so we feel the process worked.”