RICHMOND, Va. -- Richmond voted to reject the $562 million resort casino developers wanted to build along Interstate 95 in South Richmond.
With 91 percent of the vote counted, 64 percent of the voters (35,767 voters) voted no to the casino plan.
"We are proud to have run a community-centered campaign to create more opportunities for residents of this great city to rise into the middle class," a statement from the Richmond Grand Resort and Casino read. "We are grateful to the thousands of Richmonders who voted for good jobs and a stronger city, especially those in Southside who poured their hearts into this project.”
The vote, one of the most watched debates in Virginia this election season, came two years after voters originally rejected the proposal.
Richmond voters seemed somewhat spliton the vote prior to Tuesday night's final results being called.
Tonya Branham, who has lived on the Southside for two decades, voted at the Hickory Hill Community Center.
“I did vote yes for the casino," Branham said. "Just for more jobs. Maybe it will clean up the area.”
Colin Quinn, an engineer in Church Hill, said voters already made their decision two years ago.
“The first time around we voted no, and hopefully this time we will vote no and put it to rest,” Quinn said. “When it comes to the casino I don’t think there’s any evidence that a casino can benefit an economy and benefit the broader community.”
In 2020, state politicians approved legislation that would allow five casinos to be built across Virginia, only if voter approval was secured first.
Three casinos, in Bristol, Portsmouth, and Danville, have opened so far.
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