The Cordish Companies and Bruce Smith Enterprise broke ground on a Live! Casino & Hotel project that will anchor a $1.4 billion mixed-use development in Petersburg, Virginia.
Slated to open in 2027, the 450,000-square-foot resort will offer a 200-key upscale hotel with 20 suites, a pool and a fitness center, according to a release. The casino floor, meanwhile, will have 1,600 slot machines, 65 live-action table games and a sportsbook.
Live! Casino & Hotel Virginia’s meetings, convention and entertainment space will span 75,000 square feet, including a 4,000-seat concert venue; the property will also offer 10 food and entertainment concepts.
By year-end, the site will host a temporary gaming facility with 900 slots, 33 live-action table games and a casino bar and quick-service restaurant, according to the release. The temporary facility is expected to have an “immediate impact on the region,” creating 500 jobs and driving economic contribution, Zed Smith, chief operating officer for Baltimore-based Cordish Cos., shared in a statement.
In its first 10 years, the resort is expected to generate $2.8 billion in economic stimulus for the region and create 7,500 new jobs, including 6,100 during construction and 1,400 permanent jobs, the companies detailed.
The resort will “ignite tourism and ultimately deliver on the promise of greater opportunity and upward mobility for local families,” founder Bruce Smith said in a statement, adding that the groundbreaking “marks the beginning of a new era in which Petersburg will become a prime destination.”
Across the state in Bristol, Virginia, Hard Rock opened the $500 million Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Bristol in November. Caesars Entertainment, meanwhile, opened a luxury casino resort in Danville, Virginia, in December, which has so far exceeded the company’s “wildest expectations in terms of performance,” CEO Tom Reeg said during a fourth-quarter 2024 earnings call.
In South Florida, Caesars is teaming with The Cordish Cos. on The Pomp, a 223-acre hotel and casino project.
The Cordish Cos. is also developing a $270 million Live! Casino & Hotel project in Bossier City, Louisiana.
