Page 2 THE EVERETT ADVOCATE – WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 23, 2020 UMass study finds Encore construction generated $1.6B for state economy By Christopher Roberson A recent study from the University of Massachusetts Amherst found that the five-year construction period for Encore Boston Harbor sparked a $1.6 billion burst in economic activity across the state. The study – known as the Social and Economic Impacts of Gambling in Massachusetts (SEIGMA) – found that approximately 2,500 construction jobs were created and that $1 billion was paid out in salaries. The study showed that workers received an average of $47.89 per hour, which exceeded the national average of $35.83. “The release of today’s report on the economic impacts of the construction of Encore Boston Harbor is an important milestone for the Massachusetts Gaming Commission and of our charge under the Expanded Gaming Act to design and execute on a robust research agenda,” said Massachusetts Gaming Commission Chairwoman Cathy Judd-Stein during the commission’s December 17 meeting. “This research validates that both businesses and citizens of the Commonwealth were beneficiaries of this investment – in line with the goals set out by the Commonwealth with respect to casino gaming.” The SEIGMA study also found that construction companies in Everett received $32 million in contracts from Encore. “A tremendous team effort went into the construction of Encore Boston Harbor to achieve these results,” said Encore President Brian Gullbrants. “We are pleased to see that those efforts have made a significant impact on our local and state economies.” UMass Donahue Institute Senior Research Manager Rod Motamedi said Encore’s construction attracted individuals from a variety of backgrounds. “We found that the demographic characteristics of this project’s workers were representative of statewide construction workers in terms of race, gender and veteran status,” he said. “Given the size of this project, this means hundreds of thousands of hours of work for people of color, women and veterans.” The SEIGMA study found that 25 percent of the project was completed by individuals from minority groups. In addition, 50 percent of the construction workers lived in Middlesex and Suffolk Counties while five percent of the workers were Everett residents. City updates COVID testing schedule B ecause of the Christmas and New Year holidays, there will be modifications to the city’s COVID-19 testing schedule due to the testing labs closure and inability to process samples. Below please find the changes for the week of Christmas: · Wednesday, December 23 – closed at noon • Thursday, December 24 – closed • Friday, December 25 – closed Testing will resume on Saturday, December 26 at noon at the Rivergreen Park Parking Lot. During the week of New Year’s, the following changes will occur: • Wednesday, December 30 – closed at noon • Thursday, December 31 – closed • Friday, January 1 – closed • Saturday, January 2 – closed Testing will resume on Monday, January 4 at 7 a.m. at the Samuel Gentile Recreation Center at 47 Elm St. The COVID-19 testing site for senior citizens at Pope John XXIII High School will also be cancelled during this time beginning on Wednesday, December 23. Depending on the availability of additional CARES Act funding, this program might continue in the future.
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