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The tribal operators of Foxwoods and Mohegan Sun appear close to selecting East Windsor as the site for a possible third casino in the state.

The board of selectmen have scheduled a special meeting for Saturday to approve an agreement between the town and MMCT, a joint venture of the Mashantucket Pequots and Mohegans, to redevelop the vacant Showcase Cinema into casino outfitted for up to $300 million.

On Thursday, leaders of the tribes told state legislators that a decision on a location was just days away, following more than a year of evaluating sites for a Hartford-area casino. East Windsor and Windsor Locks were the two finalists for the casino.

The board of selectmen will meet at 2 p.m. in the East Windsor High School auditorium.

If the board's approval is secured in East Windsor, the agreement would still need to be backed by MMCT. East Windsor does not require a referendum vote.

Robert Maynard, East Windsor's first selectman, said late Friday he anticipates support among board of selectman members for the agreement.

"The board had a lot of input into the agreement," Maynard said. "A lot of board members are comfortable with the agreement, I know I am comfortable with the agreement."

Andrew Doba, a spokesman for MMCT, said the tribes will not be announcing their choice for the casino location Saturday.

"We've said from the beginning that one of our goals is securing local approval and East Windsor tomorrow is taking a key step toward that goal," Doba said.

Doba said the tribes "will have more to say in coming days."

The Hartford-area casino is intended to blunt the competitive threat of a $950 million casino and entertainment complex now under construction in nearby Springfield.

The satellite casino, which could have 2,000 slots and 100 to 150 tables, has been billed as a strategy to preserve jobs with the state's gaming industry and the slot revenue the state gets monthly from Foxwoods and Mohegan Sun.

State lawmakers in 2015 approved the tribes seeking out a third location, but they still must gain final approval from the legislature for the site and expanding casino gambling in Connecticut beyond Native American reservations.

The potential expansion of casino gambling in Connecticut has been controversial. The developer of the Springfield venue, MGM Resorts International, challenging the sole selection of the tribes in court. MGM argues more operators should have been part of the process.

At a legislative forum Thursday, MGM and others argued that casino expansion should take place in the southwestern corner of the state, not north central Connecticut.

And even as the tribes select a site, there is a push for the state to seek more proposals and compare them with what is envisioned by MMCT.

At a town meeting with the tribes in January, East Windsor town residents were mixed in their opinions. Their views ran the gamut of those who were already ready to welcome the casino to town to those who were concerned about crime.

The Showcase Cinemas is just off I-91 and meets a key criteria of high visibility. It also would give the tribes a jump because it provides an existing building that would just have to be retrofitted.

East Windsor was eliminated by MMCT in a first round of proposals, but submitted another proposal in a second round.

MMCT also is considering a dormant tobacco field in Windsor Locks near Bradley International Airport. Local officials in Windsor Locks pledged to bring the issue to a referendum vote.