The Lowell Memorial Auditorium is City owned but Tom McKay and his partners Leo Creegan and Terry McCarthy at Mill City Management book the shows and run the Auditorium for which the City pays them $320,000 each year. They do a tremendous job and if the City had given them the Tsongas Arena when it was built, the City would have made money and maybe still owned it if you ask me.

Mill City does a great job, is friendly and helpful to all sorts of non-profit groups and the Auditorium is a great place to see a show.

However I’m not sure I agree with his assessment that a Casino in Mass would kill the place. If a Casino was in New Bedford or even out past Worcester then I don’t think that the people of greater Lowell and New Hampshire would stop attending. I don’t even think that the acts Tom refers to would avoid playing at the Lowell Auditorium.

But McKay argues that casinos would bring a new kind of buying power to the state, the kind with the financial heft to outbid venues like the Auditorium, enforce “exclusivity” rules that forbid acts they book from playing venues within a certain radius, and draw patrons into a world that is self-contained. And casinos have begun booking traveling Broadway shows, too, which have become a mainstay of the Auditorium’s schedule

If a casino is built in the Greater Boston or Worcester Area then I agree that it may cause issue with the Auditorium but not one in western Mass. or Fall River. Many people now drive to Conn. Or Rhode Island to gamble and see a show but still go out for a night in Lowell and a show.

While I appreciate Tom’s “concern” for area restaurants and local businesses this seems to be more of a self preservation plea from Mill City Management. They have a legitimate concern that they may not be needed and may be out of business.

I think Tom should look at this as a new kind of opportunity. Here’s a good gamble for them to take. With their outstanding history and the great work Pete Lally does as GM. Mill City should cozy up to a Casino developer and offer their service to book shows at BOTH locations. As Tom says “They would bring a new kind of buying power”. They have the connections and track record and could make both a success. So Tom instead of fighting against join in and use your years of experience to continue to grow the shows and events.