Tim’s Top 5: Five Ways to Get the Casino Deal Done in New Bedford

With the potential casino deal on the New Bedford waterfront once again at a stalemate, it's time for KG Urban Enterprises to consider "upping the ante" as the March 16 deadline to file with the Massachusetts Gaming Commission looms.

1. REVEAL THAT ALL ALONG, THE 'KG' BEHIND KG URBAN IS NONE OTHER THAN FORMER CELTIC KEVIN GARNETT.

This isn't true, of course, but considering the involvement of former NBA Commissioner David Stern with the group, maybe people will buy it. Plus, KG's Boston jersey is now 50 percent off, so KG Urban could pick some up in bulk and start handing them out around the city to curry even more goodwill. Would anyone really believe it? Probably not. But like Garnett once famously said...

2. PAY FOR THE CONSTRUCTION OF A NEW ROUTE 6 BRIDGE

Taylor mentioned this in passing on the air, but what better way to convince the people of the region that you're serious about keeping the area vibrant than to replace one of its worst symbols of the backwards past? Nothing would move New Bedford into the future more than a new Fairhaven-New Bedford bridge. Actually, we'd settle for it just letting us move from Fairhaven to New Bedford, period.

3. THREE WORDS: UNLIMITED. FEAST. TICKETS.

From now until the 200th annual Feast of the Blessed Sacrament, KG Urban and the operators of the casino agree to supply registered New Bedford voters with unlimited Feast tickets for food and beverages. Is that buying the people and their support? Maybe, but I'll side with anyone who's putting carne d'espeto and Madeira wine in my hands.

4. NO MORE SNOW, EVER.

This might be a tough sell, especially to those who just bought a brand-new SUV following the worst winter ever. But if the casino and its proposed 17-story hotel tower could in any way help alter the weather enough to keep the snow from ever falling again, I'd be fine with that. We're all done with it after this year, right? At the very least, they could allow residents to park in their garage during the many parking bans throughout the winter. Or maybe we have Mayor Mitchell and Ron Labelle take the snow removal budget to the casino every November and try to double or triple it at the tables, so that we'll have enough in the coffers to cover all the salt and sand needed to take care of those side streets.

5. INCLUDE A SONIC DRIVE-IN AS PART OF THE COMPLEX.

I just really, really love Sonic. Seriously, why don't we have a Sonic? Make it happen, KG Urban.