RICHMOND, Va. — A ballot measure permitting the construction of a casino in Petersburg has passed with 82% of the vote, 71% reporting, according to Decision Desk HQ (DDHQ).
Officials with the Cordish Company, which is behind the project, estimated the casino would generate a $2.8 billion economic boost to the region over the first 10 years and provide the city with $240 million in tax revenues along with job opportunities.
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Petersburg was chosen as a potential landing spot for a casino after voters in Richmond rejected the proposal on two separate occasions.
The Cordish Company envisions the casino as a 400,000-square-foot facility, complete with a 200-room hotel, eight dining and entertainment options and a state-of-the-art entertainment venue.
"The citizens have spoken tonight, and they are excited," said Petersburg Mayor Sam Parham at a celebration Tuesday night.
Parham said the city will work to get the project through the zoning process to help the company break ground as soon as possible. That groundbreaking will come just 9 years after the city was almost bankrupt and $17 million in the red.
"We did not want just a casino, we wanted a destination resort," Parham said. "The casino is a small piece of this because we're going to have the entertainment, convention center, the hotel."
The mayor believes this approval sends a message to the rest of the Commonwealth about Petersburg.
"For far too long, projects of this magnitude have passed over this small city, so this right here is the city most deserving, which is the city of Petersburg," Parham said.
Groundbreaking is expected in the first quarter of 2025, with Live Casino Petersburg opening its doors in 2026.
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