Prince George’s County Council is expected to approve an application for construction of the US$925m (€681m, £545m)
MGM casino complex at National Harbor in Maryland, US, on 14 July.
MGM Resorts International could begin construction on the project – which is close enough to Capitol Hill that the
Washington Monument can be seen in the distance – as soon as late July, with the resort expected to open in Q3 2016.
The Nevada-based gaming giant wants to build a 300-bedroom glass-tower hotel, a 135,000sq ft (12,542sq m) casino with 3,600 slot machines and 140 gaming tables, a 1,200-seat concert theatre, 35,000sq ft (3,252sq m) of meeting space, seven restaurants – some of which will be celebrity chef-driven – a spa, plus high-end retail stores.
The casino complex will be situated on a 23-acre site overlooking the Potomac River. It will be the latest addition to the six-year-old, multi-use 150-acre development in National Harbor – which currently has five hotels, numerous shops, office buildings, 30 bars, restaurants and food outlets in addition to 600 town houses and condominiums.
The other five hotels include the Gaylord National – which operates a 486,000sq ft (45,151sq m) convention centre and has 2,000 guest rooms – a Westin, Residence by Marriott, Hampton Inn and Aloft.
MGM National Harbor President Lorenzo Creighton acknowledged that MGM Resorts usually has the largest hotel in any of the complexes it becomes involved in, but said the company hopes to grow the National Harbor market by offering something new and complementary.
Approximately 5,000 people work at National Harbor, which attracts 8 to 10 million visitors a year.
“I think the project clearly puts focus on National Harbor and creates tremendous growth opportunity,” Creighton told
The Las Vegas Review - Journal. “We have developed a good relationship with the other hotels. There is good synergy. We're going to bring a lot more bodies to the Harbor.”
Gaylord National’s public relations manager Rachel Dinbokowitz said: “It offers more entertainment options for our guests. We don’t see it as competition.”
