[toc]The opening of the $2.4 billion Wynn Boston Harbor Casino in Massachusetts is still a year and a half away, but the property is beginning to take shape.

tocThe opening of the $2.4 billion Wynn Boston Harbor Casino in Massachusetts is still a year and a half away, but the property is beginning to take shape. Located on the banks of the Mystic River in Everett, Massachusetts, Wynn Boston Harbor is being touted as America’s first urban five-star gaming resort. Wynn Boston Harbor revises retail plan. When the state granted Wynn one of the available gaming licenses, casino developer Steve Wynn sold the concept with the promise of retail. More than just a casino, Wynn Boston Harbor was going to be a high-end shopping destination. Revised plans indicate there will be only 9,000 square feet of retail space.

Located on the banks of the Mystic River in Everett, Massachusetts, Wynn Boston Harbor is being touted as America’s first urban five-star gaming resort. As such, visitors should expect to be wowed with the lavish décor and world-class amenities.

Here’s a glimpse at what the resort casino will have to offer.

A quick history of Wynn Boston Harbor

Wynn Resorts owns and operates Wynn Boston Harbor.

Even though it will be the last of the three approved Massachusetts commercial casinos to open its doors, Wynn will be the grandest and the most popular.

The Wynn project has a few things working in its favor.

First, it’s located just outside of Boston proper. As they say,location, location, location.

Second, the company is investing a lot of money in its success. The casino will have a final price tag some 2.5-times forthcoming MGM Springfield Casino in western Massachusetts.

Wynn Boston Harbor was the most controversial of the three Massachusetts casinos. That is part of the reason it is the last to open.

In addition to the usual hullabaloo that accompanies any large scale building project, local lawsuits over revenue sharing and the land Wynn purchased for the property having ties to mobsters stalled the casino’s construction.

Despite the casinos travails, it’s been relatively smooth sailing since Wynn broke ground on the project.

Wynn Boston Harbor entertainment

At this point there are scant details about the casino’s on-site entertainment options.

The property will almost certainly boast some type of theater for shows, as well as live music in night clubs, bars, and perhaps the pool area.

However, Wynn might scale down some of its entertainment options, considering the casino’s proximity to Boston, and its plethora of theater and entertainment choices.

One thing we do know, Wynn Boston Harbor will have a 36,000 square-foot ballroom and meeting space that it will use to host special events like New Year’s Eve parties.

Wynn Boston Harbor restaurants

Wynn Boston Harbor will boast 13 restaurants, dining options, and bars.

In a March 2017 interview with the Everett Independent, Wynn Boston Harbor President Bob DeSalvio gave a few hints at the types of restaurants that visitors will be able to choose from.

The cuisines DeSalvio named included:

• An oyster bar
• An Asian fusion restaurant
• An Italian fine dining restaurant
• A casual Italian restaurant
• A craft brewery

But with its opening still 18 months in the future, only a single restaurant has officially been linked to the property.

Wynn Las Vegas

Sinatra

Wynn is bringing one of its top restaurant brands to Boston: Sinatra. There is already a Sinatra Restaurant in Wynn Encore Casino in Las Vegas.

According to a press release by Wynn Boston Harbor “the Sinatra menu will include many of Ol’ Blue Eyes favorite dishes such as spaghetti and clams and ossobuco.”

The décor at Sinatra Wynn Boston Harbor will feature plenty of Sinatra memorabilia, including his Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor in “From Here to Eternity” and his Grammy Award for “Strangers in the Night.”

Wynn Boston Harbor amenities

Hotel and grounds

Wynn Boston Harbor includes a 29-story hotel with 671 rooms and suites.

The casino will have a 3,000-space, four-story underground parking garage, as well as an additional 800 parking spots offsite.

The amenities offered at the five-star property include:

• A full service spa
• Fitness facility
• Outdoor space
• An indoor garden
• Harbor walk

Retail

Original plans called for over 56,000 square feet of retail space. After finding high-end tenants proved problematic, that number dropped to just 9,000 square feet.

Other than being ultra-high-end, little is known about what kind of stores the retail space will house.

The ballroom

As noted above, the property will have a 36,000 square-foot multi-use convention space. That will make Wynn Boston Harbor the second-largest convention space in Boston.

The ballroom was added late in the process, replacing some of the planned retail locations. DeSalvio explained the change to the Everett Independent in March:

“There is a real shortage of large ballroom space in our particular region. The largest ballroom available here is at the Convention Center (in South Boston). With this change, we would have the largest ballroom in the Greater Boston area.”

In addition to the main room there are also 10 smaller meeting rooms available.

Wynn Boston Harbor gaming

Gaming is central to any casino, but Wynn properties tend to rely less on gaming than its competitors, preferring non-gaming revenue.

That said, the casino will have a 200,000 square-foot casino floor that will house:

• 2,500 slot machines
• 150 table games
• A 90-plus table poker room

Photo by Casimiro PT / Shutterstock.com

71% of Encore staff affected

The Encore Boston Harbor in Everett has placed 3,000 staff on furlough, just days ahead of its anticipated July reopening. In line with Massachusetts’ Phase Three rollout target date of July 6, Boston’s only casino resort has implemented a COVID-19 refit and hopes to open its doors to guests early July, subject to Governor Charlie Baker’s approval.

on furlough “until business demand dictates”

In a statement, the Encore Boston Harbor described the furloughs as part of “very difficult decisions”. Although it has furloughed around 3,000 of its 4,200-strong workforce, it said some staff will return to the resort for training once the reopening dates are officially announced. Those not invited back will stay on furlough “until business demand dictates.”

This latest round of cuts follows Encore’s May announcement of its plans to furlough 10% of its staff, which means 81% of its employees are now out of work.

Counting the cost

Wynn Resorts, Encore’s holding company, made the decision to continue paying staff across North America for 75 days after closures. This sits in stark contrast to Caesars Entertainment, which furloughed 90% of its employees back in April.

Holding back on mass furloughs until now, Wynn Resorts said it spent $3m a day on its staff between the coronavirus-impacted months of March and May. This has cost the company around $220m.

spent $3m a day on its staff

Massachusetts received about $582m in taxes and assessments from the state’s three casino operators combined by March.

Wynn Boston Harbor Project

Changes in place

The casino, which forms part of the $2.6bn Encore Boston Harbor project,plans to open on a limited basis in July. The resort’s hotel service will be limited to four nights a week. Changes have been made to the property’s open gaming areas, while new guidelines are in place for amenities and food and beverage sales, with dining capacity also downscaled.

switching off every other slot machine, removing seating to ensure social distancing, and reducing capacity to 25%

Encore Boston Harbor

Along with the state’s other two casinos, MGM Springfield and Plainridge Park, the Encore Boston Harbor property has been working on reopening preparations with the Massachusetts Gaming Commission. The commission signed off on requirements that include casinos switching off every other slot machine, removing seating to ensure social distancing, and reducing capacity to 25%.

Wynn Boston Harbor Construction

The Encore Boston Harbor’s own reopening guidelines, issued in May, included QR code menus, plexiglass partitions, temperature checks, and personal protective equipment for staff.