The owner of the Hollywood Casino Perryville has submitted a plan to operate a $700 million gaming complex at Rosecroft Raceway in Prince George’s County, Md., 13 miles south of Washington, D.C.
Penn National’s Gaming’s proposed Hollywood Casino Resort at Rosecroft Raceway includes an integrated casino gaming and racing entertainment facility that will feature video lottery terminals (slot machines) , live table games; a poker room; a hotel with a pool and spa; a variety of food and beverage options; an entertainment and multi-purpose event center, and a new new grandstand.
Penn National is competing with MGM Resorts, which wants to build a gaming complex at National Harbor, also in Maryland and near Washington, D.C.
The company estimated the new project to generate approximately 4,600 direct and indirect construction jobs, and 2,600 permanent direct and indirect jobs. Penn Nationa would keep racing at the track as the facility is constructed
“We believe our proposed Hollywood Casino Resort at Rosecroft Raceway represents the best way forward for Prince George’s County and the state of Maryland as it ensures the track’s long-term viability, provides further stability to the local horsemen and the state’s horseracing industry, brings significant new investment and employment to the area and will be a long-term driver of elevated economic activity,” said Tim Wilmott, president and chief Operating Officer of Penn National Gaming. “Penn National is excited to bring its Hollywood brand to the six million residents of the greater Washington D.C. area, providing an easily accessible, world-class entertainment experience that features the best in casino gaming, live harness racing, dining and accommodations. We are looking forward to a fair and objective selection process and working with the local community and the state regulators to make this vision of a Rosecroft Raceway of the future a reality. Finally, Penn National has strong record with gaming regulators, the industry’s most extensive record of development and operation of first-class gaming facilities, and the company’s strong balance sheet is an asset to the project which ensures that we can and will build the resort facility we are proposing.”
The proposals in Maryland come after the Maryland Live Casino outside Baltimore has quickly grown into the largest venue in the region. The casino has led to a sharp decline in slot revenues at Hollywood Casino, Perryville.
It is also bad news for the Delaware gaming industry, which had been drawing customers from the Baltimore-area.
A Delaware legislator has proposed the formation of a commission to study adding two additional casinos to the three already in the state.
