SPRINGFIELD, Mass. (AP) — The Latest on the grand opening of Massachusetts' first resort casino (all times local):

3:35 p.m.

MGM has opened Massachusetts' first resort casino — a $960 million complex in downtown Springfield offering expansive Las Vegas-style gambling and entertainment options.

Thousands of people who gathered outside for the grand opening and a parade have moved inside to the slot machines and gambling tables. The complex also has a hotel, restaurants and upscale retail shops.

City officials have hailed Friday's opening as a significant step forward in Springfield's economic renewal. The new casino occupies a corner of downtown that was hit hard by a major tornado in 2011.

MGM Springfield president Michael Mathis says the opening was "pretty magical."

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9 a.m.

Massachusetts' first resort casino with expansive gambling and entertainment options is opening Friday with a Las Vegas-style flourish.

A procession through downtown Springfield will kick off with Budweiser Clydesdale horses and other entertainment in the morning.

Doors officially open 11 a.m. at the casino, hotel, entertainment and retail complex, considered the first of its kind in Massachusetts.

Plainridge Park, a more modest slots parlor south of Boston, has been open since 2015 and Wynn Resorts promises to open a $2 billion casino development just north of Boston next year.

The Native American tribes that operate Connecticut's Foxwoods and Mohegan Sun resorts also are proposing a Hartford-area casino to directly compete with MGM Springfield.