Legislators decided in September not to include language in the budget forbidding Richmond from holding a second referendum. That referendum was shot down 58-41 by Richmond voters in a citywide ballot referendum last month. Plans for the project, branded as the Richmond Grand Resort and Casino, called for an entertainment and gaming complex at 2001 Walmsley Blvd. and 4700 Trenton Ave.
In the wake of the Richmond vote, the Petersburg City Council unanimously approved a legislative agenda that included a provision for a casino referendum in Petersburg by November 2025. That also included a request for the General Assembly to allow a casino in a city with a population below 200,000.
The legislative proposal highlights the casino’s potential to provide job opportunities for residents, ensuring incomes that surpass the city’s current average household earnings of $44,000 per year. It also seeks an estimated 1,800 jobs created along with 1,000 construction jobs.
The state commission’s study estimated that a proposed casino in Petersburg could generate $204 million in net gaming revenue each year, of which Petersburg would receive 6%, or around $12,240,000.
Sen. Morrissey was one of the city’s two champions in the General Assembly during the first casino fight. He has since been defeated by now Senator-elect Lashrecse Aird, D-Petersburg, who will take over the city’s bargaining in the capital. Petersburg Mayor Sam Parham said council members had met Aird and that she was “supportive of our Legislative Agenda as stated,” according to meeting minutes from November 21, as reported by the above-mentioned media.
Original article: https://www.yogonet.com/international/noticias/2023/12/12/70031-virginia-petersburg-asks-general-assembly-for-the-right-to-hold-casino-referendum
