Brockton officials recommend casino zoning district

City officials are moving toward approving zoning changes at the proposed casino site, while also considering how to reflect a more comprehensive entertainment district.
The Planning Board favorably recommended Tuesday night that the City Council adopt new zoning rules at the site of the proposed $650 million casino. Developer Mass Gaming & Entertainment, an affiliate of Chicago-based Rush Street Gaming, filed a zoning ordinance with the council in March called a "resort casino overlay district.”recommend casino

The district, if approved, would be superimposed over the current zoning at the Brockton Fairgrounds, where Rush Street is proposing to construct a 250,000-square-foot gambling facility, seven-story hotel, event and entertainment space and 3,000 parking spots.

It will now go before the council’s ordinance committee, which is scheduled to meet May 27. The full council must approve the changes before they take effect.Planning Board members accepted the proposal’s height restrictions and setbacks, but also worked with the developer and City Planner Rob May to fit the casino district into the city’s overall planning vision, said Jack Yunits, the former mayor who is a consultant for Rush Street.

(May) wanted something a lot more comprehensive than just a casino zone, and we were able to accommodate him in a lot of ways,” Yunits said, adding that the city wanted to examine how Campanelli Stadium and The Shaw’s Center, for instance, would fit into the area’s zoning.

May said Wednesday that he was still working on the language that will be presented to the ordinance committee next week.

Among the originally proposed zoning standards were a maximum 100-foot height for the hotel and a 65-foot height or five-story maximum for other buildings. Setbacks adjacent to residential neighborhoods would have to be at least 80 feet, though the developer has proposed even wider setbacks in some areas.

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