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Portsmouth, Rush Street Gaming unveil casino renderings

After receiving pre-certification from the Virginia Lottery Board last week to operate a Virginia casino, Rush Street Gaming on Tuesday revealed more details about the proposed $300 million Rivers Casino Portsmouth, including the first renderings of the gaming, conference and hotel complex.

The 400,000-square-foot Rivers Casino Portsmouth will include slot machines, table games and poker, as well as several restaurants, a hotel and conference space. There will also be a parking garage and surface parking available. 

Click to expand the renderings courtesy of the city of Portsmouth and Rush Street Gaming. 

“From these images, we get a sense of the aesthetics and energy that’s consistent with where Portsmouth is headed,” Malcom Mitchell, vice chair of the Economic Development Authority of the City of Portsmouth, said in a statement. “Rivers Casinos in New York, Pennsylvania and Illinois were each constructed on underutilized land — and today those casinos are surrounded by restaurants, theaters, stadiums and other development activity.

“The enhanced renderings are really bringing the vision for the corridor to life – it’s an exciting next step.”

Legislation passed by the General Assembly allowing five economically challenged cities to host one commercial casino each became legal on July 1. Hard Rock and Caesars Entertainment are planning resorts in Bristol and Danville, and the Pamunkey Indian Tribe has received city approval for its casino in Norfolk and is bidding in Richmond. Investors must put in at least $300 million into each project. The casinos are anticipated to bring in more than $1 billion in annual total revenues. Voters will have to approve the casinos in local referendums this year or next year for the projects to get the final green light.

The Portsmouth casino plans to be located along Interstate 264 in what will be deemed as the Entertainment District. Rush Street Gaming will also pay an additional $10 million to Portsmouth for acreage located on Victory Boulevard in Portsmouth.

“Immediately upon seeing the Victory Boulevard site, we envisioned Rivers Casino there,” Jacob Oberman, Rush Street Gaming senior vice president of development, said in a statement. “In working with city leadership over the past year, we’re confident that, together, we can create an amazing venue with tangible results for the people of Portsmouth.”

The Rush Street Project alone is anticipated to generate $16.3 million in annual tax revenue for Portsmouth and $260 million in annual regional GDP. The Portsmouth EDA anticipates that the casino will create 1,400 construction jobs, 2,000 permanent jobs — and $62 million annually in wages, salaries and tips. 

“These new enhanced renderings showcase what we’ve been envisioning, and we are grateful for the entire team that has gotten us to this point,” Portsmouth Mayor John L. Rowe Jr. said in a statement. “On top of the historic legislation, this casino and the Entertainment District will really reshape the future of this currently undeveloped area. These exciting visuals help make this project more of a reality.”

 

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Va. Lottery Board advances Portsmouth casino

The city of Portsmouth announced Wednesday that its preferred casino gaming partner, Chicago-based Rush Street Gaming, has been pre-certified by the Virginia Lottery Board to operate a Virginia casino.

The pre-certification is necessary to move forward with a local gaming referendum in November. 

“We are grateful for the Lottery Board’s diligence on this matter and for Virginia’s openness to a long-term partnership with our organization,” Jacob Oberman, Rush Street Gaming senior vice president of development, said in a statement. “Moving forward with the referendum is a positive step for Portsmouth and for the commonwealth. We’re excited to bring new jobs, opportunities for local businesses and increased tax revenue to benefit the entire community.”

Legislation passed by the General Assembly allowing five economically challenged cities to host one commercial casino each became legal on July 1. Hard Rock and Caesars Entertainment are planning resorts in Bristol and Danville, and the Pamunkey Indian Tribe has received city approval for its casino in Norfolk and is bidding in Richmond. Investors must put in at least $300 million, which Rush Street Gaming expects to do. The casinos are anticipated to bring in more than $1 billion in total revenue to the state.

The Rush Street Project alone is anticipated to generate $16.3 million in annual tax revenue for Portsmouth and $260 million in annual regional GDP. The Portsmouth Economic Development anticipates that the casino will create 1,400 construction jobs, 2,000 permanent jobs — and $62 million annually in wages, salaries and tips. 

The Portsmouth City Council will vote on the casino gaming referendum during its virtual July 16 meeting. The casino would be located along Interstate 264 in what will be deemed as the Entertainment District in Portsmouth. The entire project is expected to include a casino, an entertainment venue, restaurants and a sportsbook.

“Pre-certification by the Virginia Lottery Board is a vote of confidence by the commonwealth’s experts on our choice of preferred partner, and we could not be more excited for the Rush Street team to begin their work getting to know Portsmouth voters,” Portsmouth Economic Development Director Robert D. Moore said in a statement. “It is important for the citizens of Portsmouth to be involved in the process as we head towards November, and that they understand the full scope of the Entertainment District. 

“We are ready for this next step.”

 

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Caesars wins bid in Danville casino project

After taking bids from several companies, Danville officials announced Monday that the city is in negotiations with Caesars Entertainment to be the preferred operator of a Danville-based casino. Voters will still need to approve the casino in a November local referendum.

The $400 million resort is proposed for the former Dan River Mills industrial complex in Schoolfield, with plans for up to 500 hotel rooms, a 35,000-square-foot conference center, a 2,500-seat live entertainment venue, and would include multiple restaurants and bars. In the casino, there will be 2,000 slot machines, 75 table games, 16 poker tables and a sportsbook, according to a news release from the city. The project also would create 1,300 jobs, the city says, which would pay wages between $35,000 and $47,000 annually.

The project is expected to be finished in 2023, producing 900 construction jobs.

The Danville casino is estimated to generate more than $30 million in annual revenue from gaming taxes and supplemental payments to the city, as well as $4 million in real estate, meals, sales and hotel taxes, according to a city news release. The proposal includes at least $20 million in upfront payments to the city for land acquisition and other public investments.

City Manager Ken Larking said in a statement that Danville expects to use the upfront funds for a new police headquarters and to spur private investment.

Danville is one of five economically challenged cities across the state granted approval by the Virginia legislature this year to open one casino each, provided that investors agree to put at least $300 million into each project and that city councils and voters approve. The other cities are Richmond, Portsmouth, Norfolk and Bristol; all but Portsmouth have casino projects moving forward, including two involving the Pamunkey Tribe in Norfolk and Richmond. Developers in Bristol are working with Hard Rock International, which will be an equity partner in the casino if approved by Bristol voters this fall.

Earlier this year, Danville officials met privately with casino companies bidding on the project. In Sunday’s Danville Register & Bee newspaper, Caesars competitor Peninsula Pacific Entertainment and a company interested in purchasing Danville’s White Mill building purchased a two-page ad asking readers to support a casino at the former textile factory building on the Dan River.

Schoolfield is the former site of a village for White Mill workers and has been a target for redevelopment similar to downtown Danville, which has seen historic industrial buildings transformed into residential and retail space.

“Ideally, both the Schoolfield and White Mill sites will be redeveloped as a result of this project,” interim Director of Economic Development Corrie Bobe said in a statement. “As a Danville native, I know how important the redevelopment of the White Mill is to our collective sense of pride.”

She added that Schoolfield is a “more challenging” development project than the mill. “It makes sense to let the private sector take on the total cost of that site while using some of the additional revenue to encourage private development of the White Mill,” Bobe said.

Caesars Entertainment, which started in 1937 in Reno, Nevada, has 37 properties in the United States. The final decision on the casino’s branding has not yet been made, a city spokesman said.

“Caesars is pleased to emerge from a highly competitive process as the unanimous choice by the Danville City Council to build and operate a first-class casino resort in the city,” Caesars CEO Tony Rodio said in a statement. “We look forward to working with city officials, as well as the people of Danville, on the next steps to advance a project that will benefit the city for many decades to come.”

See the video rendering of the Danville casino project.

 

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Colonial Downs Group will pay Rosie’s employees through April

After closing its popular Rosie’s Gaming Emporiums and the Colonial Downs Racetrack in light of the COVID-19 pandemic, Colonial Downs Group announced Wednesday that it will pay all company employees through April and will also transition its Rosie’s Kitchens to providing 20,000 free “grab and go” meals for first responders, medical personnel and other essential workers such as grocery store employees who are serving the community during the crisis.

“Like all Virginians, we are trying to navigate through an incredibly stressful and difficult time. We want our employees to know we are taking every step possible to get them through this period, and that we value their service. That is why we raised the minimum wage to $15 an hour last year at all of our facilities, and it is why we are taking this action today. We hope this announcement provides the men and women who work at Rosie’s with some peace of mind in this challenging moment,” said Aaron Gomes, chief operating officer for Colonial Downs Group, in a statement.

“At the same time, we know that so many of our friends, family and neighbors have to be out there every day on the front line of this fight against the coronavirus. With our facilities closed, we have the capacity to help them, in our own small way, by using our kitchens to provide free meals to Virginia’s community heroes: the police officers, doctors, nurses, firefighters, grocery store employees and all those who are stepping up to serve their fellow Virginians,” Gomes added. “We will work with local leaders and businesses in the localities in which we operate to identify where we can be most helpful in this effort. We hope this partnership helps make a positive difference in the weeks ahead.”

Colonial Downs Group operates Rosie’s Gaming Emporiums in Richmond, Hampton, New Kent County and Vinton, as well as the Colonial Downs Racetrack in New Kent County.

Rosie’s will offer the meals effective April 1 and will starting taking orders for pick-up on March 30. For more info, visit the company website.

Casino operators go head-to-head in Bristol and Richmond

Casino operators are already maneuvering into position as they wait for state legislators to legalize gaming. The stakes are high, and in at least two regions multiple operators are competing to cash in.

In Richmond, the Pamunkey Indian Tribe has announced a $350 million casino within city limits, while the Colonial Downs Group and parent company Peninsula Pacific Entertainment — which runs the Colonial Downs Racetrack in New Kent County and four Rosie’s Gaming Emporiums across the state — says it wants to pursue casino status as well.

“Peninsula Pacific Entertainment has developed over a dozen major gaming facilities across the United States, and we stand ready to compete with any entity for the opportunity to help Virginia expand its gaming platform,” Aaron Gomes, chief operating officer for Colonial Downs Group, said in a statement this week. “Peninsula Pacific Entertainment has demonstrated our capabilities and commitment in Virginia over the past year by opening four extremely successful gaming operations that already provide millions of dollars in tax revenues while creating over 1,000 new jobs.”

Not so fast, said Jay Smith, spokesman for the Pamunkey Tribe, which have also proposed a $700 million casino in Norfolk. It has the backing of investor Jon Yarbrough, who founded Tennessee’s Video Gaming Technologies and has a long history with tribal casinos.

“Adding another facility like a casino to their existing monopoly at the expense of the indigenous people of Central Virginia doesn’t seem consistent with the values of the city of Richmond or the commonwealth of Virginia,” Smith said Tuesday. “Colonial Downs’ goals are different from the tribe’s goals,” he said, which include creating jobs for its members and working with communities to build businesses they need. In Richmond, the tribe has proposed building a workforce training headquarters near the casino that would eventually become a grocery store or a health clinic, depending on community input.

Smith added that Colonial Downs’ request is, “quite honestly, insensitive to the tribe.”

At the southwestern end of the state, Hard Rock Casino’s $400 million project in Bristol — backed by local businessmen Jim McGlothlin and Clyde Stacy — faces competition from the North Carolina-based Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians, which has announced a casino project at The Pinnacle in Washington County with local developer Steve Johnson.

Meanwhile, legislation under consideration in the General Assembly would allow only one casino in each of five eligible locations: Bristol, Danville, Norfolk, Portsmouth and Richmond.

Danville is the only locality with no announced bids, although the city put out a request for proposals that closed Jan. 13. A committee will review them later this month. Voters passed an off-track betting referendum last November that would allow Rosie’s to open a location in Danville.

In Portsmouth, Rush Street Gaming of Chicago has proposed a casino to sit on a 50-acre site. A cost has not been determined for the project, but the legislation being considered by the General Assembly this session would require casino operators to invest at least $200 million or more in each project.

The focus on gaming legislation comes after an extensive review by the Joint Legislative Audit & Review Commission released last November after the General Assembly opened the door to legalizing casinos in its 2019 session. JLARC concluded that casinos in five locations would generate about $260 million annually in state gaming taxes and have a positive impact on their communities, creating about 1,000 jobs per casino.

Although the Pamunkey Indian Tribe is federally recognized and could pursue a tribal casino under federal law, the state’s proposed option would be faster and require less red tape, Smith has said. However, state legalization of commercial casinos also can lead to competing bids, as is being seen now in Richmond and Bristol.

Cville’s Castle Hill Gaming signs new HQ lease

Charlottesville-based slot-machine-gaming software developer Castle Hill Gaming signed the lease for its new 20,000-square foot headquarters in Albemarle County, where it will be the anchor tenant in the $45 million Stonefield mixed-use development.

Washington, D.C.-based real estate firm The Bernstein Companies is funding the development via its OPZ Bernstein Opportunity Fund. Construction has yet to be completed, and a timeline has not been announced for Castle Hill to move into Stonefield.

“We are thrilled to be expanding our headquarters where we can attract new talent in data science, software design and development to our new facilities once they are open,” Arthur Watson, CEO of Castle Hill Gaming, said in a statement. “The new facility will be a great place to develop our games and harbor innovation.”

Castle Hill Gaming, which provides Class II and Class III slot machine gaming to Native American tribal casinos, will receive a $1.3 million grant from the Virginia Jobs Investment Program to support the hiring and training of roughly 100 new employees, the company announced in June 2019. Albemarle County Economic Development Authority agreed to provide a matching grant.

Castle Hill employs data scientists, designers, developers and mathematicians. As of June 2019, Castle Hill Gaming employed approximately 50 people, with 25 based in Albemarle.

 

 

Pamunkey Tribe proposes $350M casino in Richmond

Updated at 4 p.m. Friday

The Pamunkey Indian Tribe has proposed a $350 million, 275-room resort hotel and casino in Richmond, the tribe announced Friday as the Virginia House of Delegates considers legislation to allow the Pamunkey to pursue commercial gaming in Norfolk and Richmond.

The resort will include a four-diamond hotel tower with a spa, pool, fitness center and several restaurants, as well as a 1,000-space parking garage.

The tribe, which is also moving toward full approval of a casino and resort in Norfolk, says this project will attract 4 million annual visitors and create more than 1,500 permanent full-time jobs, in addition to more than 1,000 construction jobs, according to a revenue forecast the tribe commissioned.

The resort and casino would be located on 36 acres in South Richmond along Ingram Avenue near Commerce Road, on three adjacent land parcels.

“We view this as a destination resort and casino,” said tribe spokesman Jay Smith, drawing people from all over the state. The 4 million visitor estimate comes from a revenue forecast the tribe commissioned, Smith added.

Jon Yarbrough, the Tennessee billionaire investor partnering with the tribe on its Norfolk project, has optioned or contracted land for the Richmond project and has closed on at least one of the properties, Smith said.

Sales prices for the privately owned land have been set, but Smith declined to disclose the full cost.

“We’ve spoken numerous times with city officials,” including elected officials and staff, said Pamunkey Indian Tribe Chief Robert Gray in an interview Friday, adding that the city government is supportive of the tribe’s plan to bring the casino to the Manchester area, which Gray said is part of the tribe’s ancestral homeland.

“The Pamunkey Tribe has had close ties to Richmond for several hundred years,” he said. “We saw a lot of development potential in that part of the area.” He added that the tribe would encourage further investment in Richmond’s Manchester area, which has seen fits and starts of development over the past two decades, mostly residential.

“The mayor is excited about the opportunity to bring a resort-style casino to Richmond,” said Jim Nolan, press secretary to Richmond Mayor Levar Stoney, in a statement. “We’ll wait to see what happens in the General Assembly and what it means for the city.”

A timeline has not been announced on the project, but the Norfolk casino has taken more than a year to move toward City Council approval. The General Assembly is considering legislation this session that would allow limited casino gaming in Portsmouth, Norfolk, Richmond, Danville and Bristol, restricted to one casino per locality, with operators being required to invest at least $200 million or more in each project.

Gray said that once the General Assembly session is over, he’d like to have “shovels in the ground as soon as possible.” As for whether the Richmond casino might open before Norfolk’s, Gray said he’s not sure. “I hadn’t really put that much thought into it.”

He added that the casino would have slot machines and table games, as well as events and entertainment, but “nothing to cannibalize what the city of Richmond is offering,” Gray added.

The casino land is part of a federally designated opportunity zone, one of 212 in the state, which allows investors to defer capital gains taxes by putting money in projects in lower-income areas. However, Gray said the tribe does not plan to take advantage of opportunity zone status or other available tax benefits.

“We’re not looking for any handouts. We’re not Amazon,” Gray said. “We want to bring this venture to Richmond and pay a fair price for the land.”

The tribe is waiting to see what happens in the General Assembly, which is considering allowing commercial casinos in the state, before presenting the project for Richmond City Council approval. Because the tribe’s casino project in Norfolk is on city-owned land, and Richmond’s is on private land, the process is a bit different, Gray and Smith said.

According to property records, 1401 Commerce Road is an 18-acre commercial office and warehouse development currently occupied by Dominion Energy, the city of Richmond and other companies. Assessed at $2.7 million in January, the land is managed by Harper Associates, a commercial real estate firm in Richmond. The 1120 Gordon Avenue property is listed as 12 acres assessed at $4.985 million, and it is managed by Chesterfield Commercial Realty.

Principal Broker Terry Earnest said he could not comment on the Gordon Avenue deal because he had signed a confidentiality agreement with the prospective purchaser.

Both properties are zoned M-1, light industrial.

Gray said he wants to help members of his tribe find jobs, both in Richmond and Norfolk.

The tribe also has secured a 13-acre property on Richmond’s Jefferson Davis Highway near Walmsley Boulevard, which would be used to build a workforce training facility. Ultimately, that property will have a different use once the resort opens, such as a grocery store or health clinic to benefit the community, the tribe says.

“We want to talk to the community and see what they want,” Gray said.

 

 

Pamunkey tribe, city sign Norfolk casino agreements

The city of Norfolk and the Pamunkey Indian Tribe announced Monday that the tribe’s proposed $700 million casino along the Elizabeth River is moving closer to reality.

According to a tribe press release Monday, the Pamunkey and the city have signed two agreements: an option to purchase 13.4 acres of undeveloped city property adjacent to Harbor Park for more than $10 million, and a developmental agreement that will govern and regulate the resort.

Under the option-to-purchase agreement announced Monday, the tribe would have a term of three years to buy the land, with the option to extend the term twice for one year each; a full-value purchase price of $750,000 per acre based on a third party’s appraisal of the land; and a provision to allow the tribe the right to conduct commercial gaming before the land is purchased.

The development agreement requires that the tribe complete the project by a yet-to-be-determined deadline and pay for all transportation and infrastructure improvements, as well as construction of a trail around the resort.

“The signing of these agreements makes it official — we are partners with Norfolk to bring a world-class resort and casino to the region,” Chief Robert Gray said in a statement.

Jon Yarbrough, the billionaire founder of Tennessee’s Video Gaming Technologies who now runs a private investment firm, has partnered with the tribe to build the casino. He has a long history with the Native American gaming industry and purchased property in New Kent County in 2018.

Last September, Norfolk City Council voted to grant the city manager authority to execute the agreements, after the casino plan was announced in December 2018.

The Pamunkey Tribe has decided to pursue a commercial route for building the casino, Norfolk Mayor Kenny Alexander announced in December, instead of a federal tribal casino, which would have required approval from the U.S. Department of the Interior. The General Assembly is currently considering legislation to allow commercial casinos in Virginia.

The Pamunkey reservation is east of Richmond in King William County by the Pamunkey River, where 85 tribal members live. Gray said in a November 2019 interview with Virginia Business that he hopes to bring more members of the tribe back to Virginia and improve housing, infrastructure and educational options for them.

Norfolk is considered part of the tribe’s ancestral homelands, he said, “where we live, where we hunted, trapped, traded with other tribes.”

The casino met with some opposition from the Nansemond Tribe, which lives in Suffolk and Chesapeake, and voiced concern about preserving their own history and heritage in the region if the project went forward. Also, some city residents tried to overturn the 7-1 City Council vote with an anti-casino petition last fall, but the effort failed.

“I am pleased to announce that we have reached mutually agreeable terms with the Pamunkey Indian Tribe to pursue a resort project that will conform and comply with commercial gaming legislation being considered in Virginia,” Norfolk City Manager Larry “Chip” Filer said in a statement Monday.

He added that pending legislation in the General Assembly will determine the “size and scope of our resort casino project,” and Norfolk voters will vote on a gaming referendum in November. City staff also will report on the gaming market, Filer said in his statement.

Other casino projects have been proposed across the state, including a deal in Washington County between the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians and developer Steve Johnson, and the Hard Rock Bristol Resort and Casino in the former Bristol Mall. Other possible locations include Richmond, Portsmouth and Danville.