Half an hour south of Richmond, the town of Petersburg, Va., is poised for economic development. In late April, the city council selected Baltimore-based Cordish Companies and Virginia Beach-based Bruce Smith Enterprise as the developers of a new entertainment district that will include a hotel, event center, and casino.
The partnership plans to build the $1.4 billion Live! Gaming & Entertainment District over the next 15 years, anchored by Live! Casino & Hotel Virginia. Cordish has previously developed Live! Casino & Hotel in Maryland’s Anne Arundel County and the Power Plant Live! Entertainment district in Baltimore.
The Live! Casino & Hotel Virginia will be the first phase of the project and will include 35,000 square feet of meeting and convention space; an upscale 200-room hotel featuring 20 suites, pool, and fitness center; a 3,000-seat entertainment venue; and a casino with 1,600 slot machines and 46 live-action table games.
Bruce Smith, a Virginia native and hall-of-fame NFL player, commented on the opportunities for the city of Petersburg: “A venture of such magnitude offers a historic opportunity to revive this jewel of a city, and we are galvanized and ready to deliver a project that uplifts and restores the lifeblood of Petersburg and its citizens.”
According to Cordish, this is the first joint-venture partnership in the gaming and entertainment industry to have a minority-owned business enterprise as co-development partner.
