While eyes seem to be on a new casino to be built in the Greater Hartford area of Connecticut, a recent study by Oxford Economics shows that Fairfield County would actually be able to benefit better financially if the new casino was placed in their area instead. The study was commissioned by MGM Resorts.

According to the study, if a commercial casino was constructed in the southwestern portion of Connecticut, as much as $545 million more could be generated in total. This includes $128 million more earned in tax revenues than a casino would if placed in the northern central area of the state. Placing a casino in an area such as Fairfield County would also create more jobs, some 3,600 more, according to the findings.

In 2015, Connecticut reached a deal with the Mohegan and Mashantucket Pequot tribes to use non-tribal land to create a casino. This would be the first time the state would do so. Operating the Mohegan Sun and Foxwoods Resort, the tribes are hoping to create a casino in Hartford, a venue that would be able to compete with the new casino being constructed by MGM in Springfield, a city of nearby Massachusetts.

MGM Executive VP, Global Government and Industry Affairs, Alan Feldman, stated that the bottom line is to determine where Connecticut gets the best deal. The more comprehensive the study, the clearer the answer will be. According to the findings, the clear answer is not the Hartford region. In the southwest portion of the state, Feldman believes that there will be more jobs brought to the region, more revenues and more opportunity for growth in the economy.

Officials of MGM stated that they hope the study will prompt state officials to do their own study to try and determine if different locations will be more beneficial to the economy with a new casino construction.