EVERETT, Mass. (AP) — Massachusetts’ third casino has officially opened near Boston to cheers and fanfare.

Puffs of brightly color smoke were shot into the air as thousands waited for the doors of the $2.6 billion Encore Boston Harbor to open on Sunday morning.

Some patrons began waiting in line before 7 a.m. to get a glimpse of the hotel and entertainment complex, which sits on 33 acres of formerly industrial land along the Mystic River in Everett, Massachusetts. The facility features a 671-room hotel tower, a gambling floor with 3,100 slot machines and 231 table games, 15 bars and restaurants, shops, lavish
art displays
and a harbor walk. It employs more than 5,000 workers.

Everett Mayor Carlo DeMaria said his city will no longer be the “back door to the city of Boston.”