DARTMOUTH – Rhode Islanders spent an estimated $532 million last year at southern New England’s four casino-style venues, a decrease of $16 million or 2.9 percent from 2006, according to the Center for Policy Analysis at the University of Massachusetts–Dartmouth.

But local spending by Ocean State residents actually rose, with Twin River (formerly Lincoln Park) and Newport Grand attracting $271.6 million from Rhode Islanders in 2007, an increase of 5.9 percent from the previous year’s $256 million. (READ MORE)

Rhode Islanders made up about 54.6 percent of patrons last year at Twin River, down from 58 percent in 2006, as the venue attracted more patrons from elsewhere. They made up 52.7 percent of patrons at Newport Grand, up slightly from 2006’s 52 percent.

The state’s gambling venues accounted for 50.9 percent of residents’ casino spending in 2007, up from 46.7 percent in 2006, and generated about $148.2 million in state revenue.

Rhode Islanders spent another $261.0 million at Connecticut’s two casinos, down from $291.6 million in 2006. They made up about 13.0 percent of patrons at Foxwoods Resort Casino and 4.2 percent of patrons at Mohegan Sun, and generated about $34.9 million for Nutmeg State coffers.

By comparison, Massachusetts residents – who comprised 42.3 percent of patrons last year at Twin River and 43.1 percent at Newport Grand – spent an estimated $212.2 million at Rhode Island gambling parlors last year, up from $180 million the year before. That spending generated about $115.8 million in state revenue.

At Foxwoods and Mohegan Sun – where Bay Staters comprised 36.0 percent and 20.7 percent of patrons, respectively – they spent an estimated $846.2 million last year, down from $876.2 million in 2006. Their spending yielded about $117.1 in state revenue for Connecticut.

At gambling venues in Rhode Island and Connecticut combined, spending by Massachusetts residents amounted to $1.1 billion last year, exceeding $1 billion for the fifth year in a row, the report found.

“Massachusetts patronage of Connecticut and Rhode Island gaming venues remains strong and resilient,” despite record gasoline prices, plunging consumer confidence, the spiraling credit crunch and the foreclosure crisis, Clyde W. Barrow, director of the Center for Policy Analysis, said in a statement today. “It is an extraordinary indication of Massachusetts residents’ fervor for gaming-related entertainment, hospitality and tourism, in a $5 billion New England gaming market that still has about $2 billion in untapped demand outstanding.”

Casino visits and spending by Bay State residents “are responsible for creating about 6,500 jobs at the Connecticut casinos and Rhode Island slot parlors,” Barrow said. A proposal to license three resort casinos across Massachusetts was tabled last week by state legislators. (READ MORE)

Twin River’s recent $225 million expansion aimed to attract more visitors from southeastern Massachusetts and Worcester County, he said. But, while the Lincoln facility has been somewhat successful, Barrow said, it is still attracting mostly convenience and lower-denomination players rather than the mid-level and upscale patrons it hoped to lure.

“The irony is that the more successful Twin River becomes in luring lower-denomination patrons from Foxwoods and Mohegan Sun, the more dependent it becomes on the player segment most vulnerable during economic downturns,” he added.

Of the $700 million MGM Grand at Foxwoods, slated to open in May, and the $700 million expansion at Mohegan Sun, Barrow noted that non-gaming space makes up 97 percent of their combined square footage.

“The two Connecticut casinos are positioning themselves as national and international destinations, by expanding into full-blown gaming, entertainment and convention and meeting complexes. … The current expansions are an aggressive move designed to capture an even bigger portion of Massachusetts’ and Rhode Islands’ conventions and meetings business,” he said.

For more information about the University of Massachusetts–Dartmouth Center for Policy Analysis and its New England Gaming Research Project, including the latest data on gambling expenditures in southern New England, visit www.umasd.edu/cfpa/.