Officials at Caesars Entertainment announced the company will increase its investment in Caesars Virginia Casino & Resort in Danville, scheduled to open in 2024, from $500 million to $650 million.
Caesars also announced the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians (EBCI) recently became a joint venture partner in the project, along with a local minority investor. EBCI recently bought Caesars Indiana in the southern part of the state which will remain a Caesars brand. EBCI also owns two North Carolina casino resorts: Harrah’s Cherokee Casino Resort in Cherokee and Harrah’s Cherokee Valley River Hotel & Casino in Murphy.
Caesars Virginia will include a 500-room hotel and a world-class casino gaming floor with over 1,300 slots, 85 live table games, 24 electronic table games, a WSOP poker room and a Caesars Sportsbook. In addition, the resort will feature a full-service spa, pool, high-quality bars and restaurants, a 2,500-seat state-of-the-art live entertainment theater and 40,000 square feet of meeting and convention space.
And the project broke ground last week in Danville.
EBCI Principal Chief Richard Sneed said, “This venture is a vital opportunity for our nation and our people. We are excited to be expanding our longstanding and successful partnership with Caesars Entertainment to develop a first-class resort that will be defined by luxury and service that Caesars’ guests have known and come to expect.”
At the groundbreaking Sneed said, “With construction now officially underway, we are excited to be one step closer to welcoming guests to a premier resort for fun and entertainment in the Danville area, We are grateful for all of the support we have received from local citizens and leaders for this venture that will create new jobs and provide economic growth across the region. The Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians looks forward to a long and mutually beneficial relationship with the City of Danville.“
Caesars was equally enthusiastic about the possibilities of the Virginia property.
“We are incredibly excited to mark this next step in Caesars Virginia’s development with the support and enthusiasm of the Danville community and surrounding region,” said Barron Fuller, Regional President with Caesars Entertainment. “The people of Danville entrusted us to build a world-class resort for visitors from around the country to enjoy, and that is exactly what we intend to do.”
Convergence Strategy Group, a consultant that helped guide Danville through the selection process, offered congratulations.
We thrilled to congratulate our client, the city of Danville, on the groundbreaking for Caesars Virginia,” said co-founder Scott Fisher. “The $650 million resort casino, which overwhelmingly won voter approval in late 2020, is poised to be a game-changer for this once-struggling former mill town. Significant pre-construction work included the cleanup of an 85-acre former industrial site which has been a blight on the community since its closing more than 15 years ago.”
