MGM has marked a milestone in construction of its western Massachusetts casino.

Workers on Wednesday raised the final steel beam for the nearly $1 billion resort complex in downtown Springfield. The beam was placed atop what will become the hotel rotunda.

MGM Springfield President Michael Mathis, Mayor Domenic Sarno, state gambling regulators and labor union representatives were on hand for the occasion.

They said the casino is on track to open September 2018. It would become the state's first Vegas-style gambling destination.

Wynn also is developing a nearly $2 billion Boston-area resort slated to open in 2019. Massachusetts' lone casino is the more modest Plainridge Park slots parlor in Plainville.

Connecticut lawmakers are debating a proposal to create an Indian tribe-operated casino in the Hartford area to compete with MGM.