Encore Casino in Everett Transforms City Into Coveted Place for Housing

A casino-driven surge in Everett's Commercial Triangle has reshaped the city.

The opening of Wynn Resorts' Encore Boston Harbor has brought redevelopment to the part of the community stretching from the slot machines of Encore to the edges of the Commercial Triangle, a 100-acre plot containing former scrapyards and warehouses between the Revere Beach Parkway, Chelsea line, and the MBTA rail tracks.

Developers such as Greystar, The Davis Companies, and V10 Development are all at various stages of construction for multifamily residences. In addition, the Kraft Group is pursuing a soccer stadium. 

According to a Boston.com report, home sale data reveals how much the market has changed before and after Encore's arrival. Everett's median single-family sale price rose 38.5% from 2018 through 2024 — up 30% when including condos, according to real estate analytics firm The Warren Group.

Combined home and condo sales have jumped 36% in 2021 before dialing back as interest rates jumped from 2.96% to 6.2%.

Everett's success in reinvigorating the real estate market involves giving developers something they can't say no to: room to build and rules that won't change halfway through the process.

“We're seeing larger-scale projects like the Greystar developments — 700-plus units — getting fully permitted by the Planning Board in two or three months,” said Matt Lattanzi, the city's planning and development director and a lifelong Everett resident, in a statement shared with Boston.com. “Between introduction and actual entitlement, at most it's about four months for these larger projects.”

Beyond housing, the area is also attracting several other redevelopment initiatives. According to a Boston Globe report, the public-investment momentum also remains high. The Silver Line transit expansion is expected to run through Everett with multiple stops. A pedestrian bridge linking Assembly Row in Somerville to Encore is poised to move forward next year, and Everett continues to seek new commuter stations and public transit options.