Foxwoods Massachusetts Environmental Impacts Discussed

• More than 50 acres of land will be developed, with more than 10 being covered by asphalt or other impervious materials.
• Discharge of 225,000 gallons a day of sewage.
• Consumption of 250,000 gallons of water a day.
• Construction of a new highway interchange on a limited access highway.
• Peak traffic of 27,078 vehicle trips on Fridays, 33,559 on Saturdays.
• Construction of a 5,400-space parking garage.
• The resort casino will include 2.79 million square-feet of space.

The impact of the facility on Milford's water supply, and supply to the Charles River basin, drew several questions from the audience. The proposed water use for the casino does not trigger a MEPA review itself, but the state Department of Environmental Protection attended the meeting, and will be reviewing the project. Its representative said she would be filing comments on the plan with MEPA.

To provide the additional water to the casino, the developer has agreed to drill additional wells to add capacity, including installing new wells or rehabbing older wells at the Dilla Street and Godfrey Brook sites. The state, he said, manages how much water a community can use. The casino team will seek an expansion of that draw capacity to accommodate the development.

"It's not that you don't have enough water," Reardon said.

His comments drew several questions from Margaret Van Duesen, deputy director and general counsel for the Charles River Watershed Association. 

It appears from the plan, she said, that the casino would draw more water in the summer from the Charles River. "There are already tremendous impacts on the Charles River via Milford Water," she said. "... I just think it's misleading to say 'there's plenty of water'. The big loser — even if you can pump it — is the Charles River, due to additional withdrawals."

In his written and oral report, Reardon said the casino development would be a luxurious resort that would fit into the community and would be representative of the design and architecture of a New England resort. 

According to the report filed with the state, the $1 billion facility will include "low rise" buildings around a classic "Town Green" and incorporation of Milford pink granite in foundation materials. The facility will include almost 2.8 million square-feet of space for gaming, including 6,700 gaming seats, a 500-room hotel, 10 restaurants, smaller bars and lounges, a 1,400-seat banquet room, and 40,000 square-feet for retail.

Reardon presented no displays of height elevations of the buildings. The height of the project will be limited to 120 feet, according to the Environmental Notification Form filed by the developer.

When asked about the appearance and height of the buildings, Reardon said the current plan is to provide for parking in an eight-story garage, which will reduce environmental impacts of runoff. The garage, he said, will be twice the size of the casino building. The development team is looking into options that would help screen the portion of the garage facing homes.

Current plans, he said, call for the casino buildings to be three buildings of six stories, and another building of eight to nine stories. However, the developer could exercise an option to construct fewer buildings, with one up to 11 stories, he said. The design changed, in part, when the town in negotiating the host community agreement sought additional money for mitigation.