Portsmouth Casino (Under Construction)

[BeagleAccountant]

Portsmouth is working with Bristol and Danville to get legislation changed to allow casinos to be built. It would be built where Holiday Inn Olde Towne was next to the marina. Could be a massive change for the waterfront in PTown;

https://www.wavy.com/news/local-news/portsmouth/portsmouth-now-rolling-the-dice-on-bringing-a-casino-to-the-city/1701171760

[zeppelin14]

It's Portsmouth.... It will fall apart eventually.

[vdogg]

I have to believe that of all these different proposals, at least one will come to fruition. Only time will tell which one.

[HRVA]

Virginia's casino question: Move fast to grab gambling dollars? Or slow down and study? - Richmond Times Dispatch

Gov. Northam included $175,000 in his budget proposal for a gambling study and was quoted “I’m open minded to it but we want to do it responsibly.”

This is not going to get approved this year. 

[Willy18]

"Views of the ocean in Portsmouth. Twice as tall as anything in Portsmouth."

Edited January 15, 2019 by Willy18

[Norfolk757Kid]

https://pilotonline.com/news/media/videos/youtube_f0a37ec3-85ec-5793-831b-bf8ab2d08103.html

W.M. Jordan is a pretty good partner to have in building this though. I feel like Portsmouth has more to gain than Norfolk in this game. 

[BFG]

I’m trying my best not to complain about yet another city trying to compete instead of collaborate. I know they’ve wanted this for a while now, but part of me is a little annoyed that Portsmouth is trying to do their own waterfront casino right after Norfolk announced their plans. 

Then again, if the Nansemond tribe interferes and blocks the Pamunkey proposal, it may be a moot point. 

[vdogg]

On 1/15/2019 at 12:16 PM, Willy18 said:

"Views of the ocean in Portsmouth. Twice as tall as anything in Portsmouth."

Where is this quote from?

[vdogg]

Can’t find that specific quote but I did find the size of the hotel. 600 rooms... On that size lot, that will be the tallest building in the state...period. Twice as tall as anything in Portsmouth puts this at a minimum 600 ft.

[vdogg]

The lady from the religious group who tried to say that Chesapeake and Suffolk should have a say in whether Portsmouth has a casino because they’re so close really got on my last nerve. No, just, No. Portsmouth can handle themselves. Chesapeake and Suffolk do not get veto power over what Portsmouth does, that’s not how cities work. If you don’t like what’s going on in Portsmouth then stay the @#$*%! out of Portsmouth and mind your business. Wish I could remember which of the several videos that was but wow, that got my blood boiling.

[Willy18]

That quote came from the mayor during the live press conference that Wavy streamed live. He said it towards the end of it. 

[vdogg]

https://www.richmond.com/news/virginia/government-politics/general-assembly/pamunkey-tribe-says-it-s-willing-to-jumpstart-norfolk-casino/article_515848ad-bb18-5b81-aa19-1b60a1acaa5e.html

“Virginia’s Pamunkey Indian Tribe said Tuesday that it’s willing to fast-track its planned casino in Norfolk by opening it under commercial gambling laws instead of waiting on federal approvals for a tribal casino...

The tribe is modifying its plans in an attempt to be involved in current General Assembly deliberations about possible casinos in Bristol, Danville and Portsmouth. The federal process for a tribal casino could take years, raising the possibility that the tribe’s project wouldn’t be ready to proceed until after other casinos are up and running.

At a news conference Monday, Sen. Louise Lucas, D-Portsmouth, a sponsor of the commercial casino legislation, said she saw no reason Hampton Roads couldn’t have multiple casinos.

“There’s room at the table for everybody,” Lucas said.”

Is that regionalism I smell?  Now this is what I’m talking about! Let’s work together on this and the whole area will benefit. There seems to be a slow but palpable shift towards more cooperation amongst the area councils. I think getting the HRBT approved really opened  area leader’s eyes to what they can accomplish when they work together. I am cautiously optimistic.

[Cjnfkvb]

As much as I would like to see this get built, I would be supprised to see this get any sort of green light. The problem is that every other city/county in Virginia either wants a piece of the pie, or is strongly against gambling.  Portsmouth's proposal benifits only a few cities in Virginia. The only way I see this getting off the ground is if virginia legalized gambling statewide, and that may take a while, if it happens at all.

Edited January 21, 2019 by Cjnfkvb

[jeffconn]

The Pamunkey casino doesn't need General Assembly approval. It will get built. The GA approval means that it will get built faster, and with more games. And two casinos in Hampton Roads would be a good thing. One lone casino means a "take it or leave it" experience. Two or more means competition for customers' dollars. And personally, i look forward to the ferry from casino to casino. That will be a fun ride.

[BFG]

The idea of Norfolk having a casino next to Harbor Park and Portsmouth having one in Olde Towne reminds me of the pictures I've seen of Shreveport, with its casinos along the river. Our skylines could look much different in a few years.

[vdogg]

On 1/17/2019 at 5:13 AM, vdogg said:

The lady from the religious group who tried to say that Chesapeake and Suffolk should have a say in whether Portsmouth has a casino because they’re so close really got on my last nerve. No, just, No. Portsmouth can handle themselves. Chesapeake and Suffolk do not get veto power over what Portsmouth does, that’s not how cities work. If you don’t like what’s going on in Portsmouth then stay the @#$*%! out of Portsmouth and mind your business. Wish I could remember which of the several videos that was but wow, that got my blood boiling.

Finally stumbled across the quote I was referring too. The group is named The Family Foundation.

https://www.virginiafirst.com/news/local-news/lawmakers-put-all-cards-on-the-table-for-casino-legislation/1702124059

“This legislation would also allow localities working on these projects to let residents decide on whether or not a casino can be built there, by putting it up as a ballot referendum. That means voters at the polls have the final say. 

That’s something the head of the Family Foundation of Virginia says is troubling, since those areas would also be impacted by the developments. 

“The idea that Portsmouth is the only one that gets to vote when Suffolk and Chesapeake are, I mean, right next door is simply telling the people of Chesapeake, Suffolk and Virginia Beach that their voice doesn’t matter,” Victoria Cobb, President of the FamilyFoundation of Virginia, said. “

That’s right, it is telling them that, because your voices don’t matter in the affairs of Portsmouth. Move to Portsmouth and pay their taxes and then you can have a say...

[BFG]

Portsmouth officials now considering a new casino site near TCC.

https://pilotonline.com/news/local/article_ed2bf5fe-acc8-11e9-9a95-ff30e7b496b8.html

[vdogg]

1 hour ago, BFG said:

Portsmouth officials now considering a new casino site near TCC.

https://pilotonline.com/news/local/article_ed2bf5fe-acc8-11e9-9a95-ff30e7b496b8.html

This is nonsensical, and with WM Jordan no longer involved, not likely to happen. This proposal is dead.

That said, chances that the Norfolk casino will succeed have gone up significantly.

[HRVA]

This would be really out of place. Seems like Portsmouth would benefit more by having it Downtown to help what’s already struggling there. There’s already hotels/entertainment there & certainly more could be added. Also would fit the city’s goal of revitalizing the waterfront. If tolls are the concern then they need to push harder for a buyout of ERT - which has been discussed and would benefit far more than a casino proposal. Not sure how this new site could be considered superior. The hotel will offer great views of…Royal Farms?

[BFG]

That definitely belongs downtown. Ferry service from there to the Pamunkey casino seems like a no-brainer. 

[Qdeathstar]

Someone has got greasy pockets...

[HRVA]

A Portsmouth casino could bring in almost $400 million a year, consultants tell city

This is from a few weeks ago. While I don’t necessarily disagree with the numbers (Rosie’s reported $317 million in in their first 3 months), I am curious as to how they figured 60% of the market compared to 40% for Norfolk. 

“If Norfolk gets a casino too, the consultants estimated about 60 percent of the regional casino business would go to Portsmouth. Ideally, they said, Portsmouth would get 2,400 gaming devices, while Norfolk would get 1,600. Portsmouth would put up 75 table games and Norfolk 50.”

I am really hoping they didn’t just arbitrarily say Portsmouth will get 50% more than Norfolk across the board. That’s unfortunately what it looks like. 

[BFG]

That sounds backwards. People already go out of the way to drive to Portsmouth because of the tolls. I doubt having 800 more machines would change that.

I also don't want this to become yet another competition between two cities. The casinos should compliment one another, which is why I liked the idea of P-Town's casino going on the waterfront, with a ferry going back and forth to Norfolk.

[Kevin Cheph Randall]

They're banking on the fact Victory Crossing is very close to 664/64/264 and 58 interchange. So theoretically people coming from north and west of here would be closer to it. It would also be accessible to people who live in the area but wants to avoid tolls, its a lot more land there too. With the property downtown i don't know of any plans. Armada Hoffler has plans for the waterfront land the jail sits on,wouldn't be surprised if they had plans for more of waterfront property ( maybe they can build a real Towne Center for once j/k). Also Senater Lucas is pulling the strings on this deal, she had previous plans to build a hotel on the Victory site. She also has been pushing for casino's since forever. So this is all her, which is cool. Being a resident, we need multi million dollar development it'd be a good look imo. 

You also have people who live in NE NC who take route 17 which is pretty much George Washington hwy. Which also connects to Victory Blvd about 5 mins away from that area. So alot more people could get to that spot toll free. Plus space and influx of people,I dont know if that section of Olde Towne could manage an influx of a couple million ppl a year. It would be very tight, with the Naval hospital traffic it be major grid lock all the time. Crawford Pkwy is tight as is and probably cant be expanded. Versus Victory could easily be more lanes if needed. 

Edited August 25, 2019 by Kevin Cheph Randall

[vdogg]

Some good news on the casino, and a healthy sign of regionalism.