Virginia lawmakers recently announced they will work together to pass legislation allowing casinos in Portsmouth, Danville and Bristol. The three cities face challenges that casinos could help through economic development and job creation. The legislation would have to pass the legislature and then be signed by Governor Ralph Northam, who has said, “I’m open-minded to it but we want to do it responsibly.”
If the legislation passes, referendums would be held in each city to see if residents want a casino. The Virginia Lottery Board would regulate and oversee the casinos.
State Senator Louise Lucas is heading up the legislative effort. “These three different regions of the state deserve an opportunity to determine their own destiny. We don’t want to be left in the dust.” Lucas said she has discussed the issue with Northam. Lucas also said bringing a casino to her district would be their “own Amazon,” referring to the company’s headquarters to be built in Northern Virginia.
The legislation is opposed by House Speaker Kirk Cox, who has spoken out against gambling in his nearly 30 years as a legislator. He said gambling is not the “panacea everyone thinks it is. I would not be in support of casinos. I’m really clear with anyone I’ve met on that.”
State Del. Chris Peace introduced a bill that would create a 20-person commission on gambling to study the issues and report back to the legislature and governor each December. He said, “I think it’s important that we take a moment to pause, get all that information on the table and then make a recommendation to the body that is in the best interest of all Virginians.” However, state Del. Israel O’Quinn said, “We all know what a study means. A study means kick the can down the road until somebody else is in charge and can deal with it.”
Portsmouth Mayor John Rowe said the old Holiday Inn property on the waterfront has been selected for the project which would include a first-class hotel and a 140,000 square foot resort to be developed by Portsmouth Resorts LLC. The property would employ more than 2,000 people during the first year of operations and then more than 5,000 by its seventh year. Also after seven years, it would generate an estimated $52.1 million in annual local tax revenue and bring a recurring annual economic impact of $1.07 billion to Portsmouth and $2.09 billion total for Virginia.
Plans for the $150 million Bristol casino resort are the farthest along. It would be built within the former Bristol Mall and include a 100,000 square foot casino, more than 600 hotel rooms, indoor and outdoor pools, dining options, spa and fitness center, entertainment venue, indoor waterpark, arcade and go-kart racing, local history museum, mini golf, convention and meeting center and a
Estimated economic impact at five years includes more than 3 million visitors, nearly $450 million in annual casino revenue, $26.8 million in tax revenue to Bristol and more than 3,000 employees.
Jim McGlothlin and Clyde Stacy — former high school classmates, coal barons and longtime Southwest Virginia business leaders—would develop the venue through their United Company. McGlothlin said, “The big question is not whether we get a casino or not. Do you want the money or the taxes and the jobs in your state? Or do you want somebody else to have it?”
State De. Bill Carrico, whose district includes Bristol, said, “We all have one thing in common and that is job opportunities and creating an economy for our people that we represent. I probably won’t step foot in the casino but my personal convictions are going to be able to be taken out at the voting booth.”
The proposed $250,000 Danville casino would be developed at the 650,000 square foot White Mill Property, a former textile manufacturing facility, and include a gaming floor, dining options and a hotel. Vice Mayor Lee Vogler said if legislation passes and voters approve, construction could begin in 2020 and be completed in five years, although the casino could open in 2022.
The Pamunkey Indian Tribe also has announced plans for a $700 million casino near Harbor Park in Norfolk. Tribal officials recently said they would fast-track the casino by opening it under commercial gambling laws instead of waiting up to five years for federal approval.
The tribe wants to participate in the legislature’s consideration of the Bristol, Danville and Portsmouth casinos. Pamunkey Chief Robert Gray said, “As a federally recognized tribe with both the right to engage in gaming activities and the financial backing to make it happen, we believe that if the commonwealth is ready to authorize gaming, our project should be part of it. To consider other projects without taking into consideration the Pamunkey casino in Norfolk and the potential of additional Pamunkey casinos in Virginia would fail to take a much-needed comprehensive approach to gaming.”
State Del. Barry Knight and state Senator Lynwood Lewis plan to introduce legislation allowing the tribe to operate a commercial casino. The measure would require a local voter referendum. “We can’t ignore their rights under federal law by leaving them out of the current discussions about gaming in Virginia. This bill will maintain their much-deserved seat at the table and put them on equal footing with the others who want to open a commercial casino,” Knight said.
Developing a commercial rather than a tribal casino could help the Pamunkeys avoid having to prove the proposed Norfolk site was part of their ancestral territory. In a letter to Northam, the Nansemond Tribe said the Pamunkeys have no historical connections to Norfolk. However, the Pamunkeys said they were “confident” they could meet the federal requirements to have the Norfolk acreage taken into federal trust if necessary.
Also in Virginia, state Del. Marcus Simon pre-filed a sports betting bill, the third filed in the legislature and the second in the House. Unlike the other two, the Virginia Electronic Sports Betting Law only would approve “electronic sports betting,” mobile and internet sports betting, not sports books in brick-and-mortar venues. Wagerers would not be required to register for an account in person.
Simon’s bill would require a $5,000 application fee with a $1,000 annual renewal fee. It would tax adjusted gross revenue at 10 percent, ban betting on college sports and authorize the Virginia Lottery Board to regulate sports betting. Revenue would go primarily to assist problem gambling. Also, a permit holder would not be allowed to let an individual wager more than $1,000 in any calendar month
State Senator Chapman Petersen’s measure would allow sports betting at horseracing tracks, off-track betting sites and other physical locations, but not via mobile and online wagers. State Del. Mark Sickles also has sponsored legislation that would allow sports books at a limited number of brick-and-mortar locations, but he said he’d prefer sports wagers to be placed “on the iPhone.”
