RICHMOND, Va. (WRIC) — A bill to give Petersburg a chance for a proposed $1.4 billion casino project and block Richmond from having another shot has narrowly passed a Virginia House panel.
The House of Delegates Appropriations voted 11-9 to advance legislation from Del. Kim Taylor (R-Dinwiddie) the day after an identical proposal from state Sen. Joe Morrissey failed to advance out of a Virginia Senate committee.
If passed and signed into law, the legislation would let Petersburg put a question on ballots this November for voters to decide whether to approve the proposed casino project from The Cordish Companies that the city has approved.
That outcome seems less likely after the Senate Finance and Appropriations Committee voted Thursday not to move forward with Sen. Morrissey’s bill. But 8News’ Jackie DeFusco reports that some “no” votes in the Senate could flip with changes to the legislation.
“We will continue to work with local leaders and members of the General Assembly to bring a transformative urban revitalization project to Petersburg that will generate desperately-needed new jobs for Petersburg, along with substantial additional tax revenue for the City and Commonwealth,” Cordish COO Zed Smith said about Morrissey’s bill in a statement Friday.
The proposed project from Cordish, which has a price tag more than double the price of Richmond’s effort with Urban One, would be built in multiple phases if approved by Petersburg voters. It would include a casino, hotel, resort pool and center for events such as live music.
Legislation passed by the General Assembly making way for casino gambling allows five cities in Virginia to host their projects but requires them to ask voters to weigh in through a ballot referendum.
As of now, approval of a Petersburg casino would block Richmond from getting another chance. Richmond’s first effort to bring a casino to the city’s Southside failed in 2021 by just under 1,500 votes.