A bill before the county council of Prince George’s County, Maryland, contains requirements for hiring and contracting that would assure minority and local participation in MGM Resorts’ new National Harbor casino project. MGM, however, says the stringent requirements could delay the project’s construction.
The Video Lottery Facility Economic Opportunities Act, which could go before the full council next month, would require MGM and council members to agree on plans for construction contracts and hiring, with no building permits issued until council signs off on the agreement.
According to a report in the Washington Post, Prince George’s County Executive Rushern Baker has been in negotiations for months over conditions to be set for hiring local residents and using local and minority-owned contractors.
According to the Post, an MGM attorney asked the council to withdraw or postpone the legislation.
“This potentially could delay the start of that facility,” Lorenzo Creighton, president and chief operating officer of MGM National Harbor, told members of the council’s Public Safety and Fiscal Management Committee during a discussion of the bill. “We are building a world-class resort. It will be an iconic facility in Prince George’s, and we would love to make sure this project starts on time,” he said. “If the timeline slips, it will affect potential employees and contractors.”
Chreighton told the panel that MGM is committed to hiring up to 50 percent of its National Harbor workforce from the local population, and the projected annual payroll is $160 million.
The lawmakers were not moved. “We have almost 900,000 citizens that we represent, and we are here to protect and watch out for them,” council member Mary A. Lehman told Chreighton at the meeting. “We appreciate the money you are talking about. But let’s be clear: We haven’t seen a penny yet.”
Both the local business association and construction trade council last week came out in support of MGM’s position on the bill. James R. Estepp, a board member of the Greater Prince George’s Business Roundtable, told the committee that the council should look at MGM’s history, which indicates consistent hiring of local employees and use of local contractors.
“I think we need to allow them some leeway on how it is they feel they can construct what will be a once-in-a-lifetime building in this county,” Estepp told the panel, according to the Post.
Mark Coles, building and legislative representative of the Washington, D.C. Building and Construction Trades Council, said many of its 25,000 represented workers are counting on the project. “I have a number of members who have been out of work for a long period of time,” Coles told committee members. “The sooner they can get to work, the better off we will be. Please do expeditiously get through your process so we can start this project.”
