Richmond confirms six eligible bids for casino, seeks public input

Place your bets. Richmond Mayor Levar Stoney’s office confirmed Friday that the six casino proposals made public this week all submitted proposals that are eligible for consideration by Richmond City Council and voters.

The city also revealed the proposed locations for all six plans.

Bally’s Corp. and Golden Nugget Hotels & Casinos are interested in building a casino on property off Chippenham and Powhite parkways south of the James River and near the western edge of the city limits. In a statement, a Bally’s spokesperson said, “Bally’s is flattered that another bidder appreciates the location that we have the exclusive right to purchase. Though Parkway Crossing is Bally’s preferred site, we have multiple options for other sites, and notably maintain flexibility with the exclusive right to purchase a second site located in Richmond pursuant to the same executed letter of intent.  As such, we are confident that we will have an attractive site upon which to build the high-quality product for which Bally’s is known for the benefit of the greater Richmond community.”

Other contenders include Virginia’s Pamunkey Indian Tribe, Baltimore-based Cordish Cos., Wind Creek Hospitality and a partnership between Colonial Downs and Maryland-based media company Urban One Inc.

The other locations include:

• ONE Resort & Casino at Walmsley Boulevard and Interstate 95, at the Philip Morris Operations Center property owned by The Altria Group
• Pamunkey and Wind Creek’s proposals on separate properties on Commerce Road, also on Richmond’s South Side near I-95
• The Cordish Cos., at 1301 N. Arthur Ashe Boulevard, near The Diamond and the Scott’s Addition neighborhood.

The first virtual community meeting to discuss the six proposals will take place March 9, and full details will be available on the city website. An evaluation panel named by the city will make its final recommendations to the Richmond City Council in May or June, with the council choosing a preferred casino operator and project by June.

That will be followed by a citywide campaign to inform community members about the project before the November election, when city residents will decide whether to approve the casino via a ballot referendum.

If approved, the Richmond casino would be the fifth and final approved casino project in Virginia, which legalized commercial casino gaming last year in five cities. Bristol, Danville, Norfolk and Portsmouth voters all voted overwhelmingly in favor of allowing casinos in their cities last November.

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