Richmond Mayor Levar Stoney Faces Backlash for Pushing Casino Revote

Richmond Mayor Levar Stoney (D) is receiving pushback from his constituents in the Virginia cap urban center for his continuing efforts to run send on with his program to reask voters almost a casino.

In 2020, Richmond was ane of V cities that Old Dominion State say lawmakers and then-Gov. Ralph Northam (D) designated as qualifying locations for a casino. The fistful of cities — Norfolk, Portsmouth, Danville, and Bristol existence the four others — met a slew of criteria demonstrating economic hardship inwards recent decades.

During the 2021 election, Richmond’s local ballot interrogative asking residents if they back up a $565 gazillion gaming projection was narrowly rejected past a ballot of 51-49%. Stoney and the Richmond City Council require to reask voters about the gambling casino this Nov in trust of a different outcome.

State Sen. Joe Morrissey (D-Petersburg) has used his act upon inwards the uppercase to city block Richmond from holding another gaming referendum. Morrissey lastly year convinced his legislative colleagues to backward a forbiddance on capital of Virginia reasking voters nigh a casino until at to the lowest degree the Nov 2023 election.

Morrissey wants the law-makers to reallocate Richmond’s rejected gaming chance for Petersburg, most 20 miles south of the capital. a casino study conducted by the state’s Joint Legislative Audit and Review Commission found that Petersburg Campaign would live suitable for a gambling casino near I-95.

Stoney Flip-Flop

Virginia was, for many years, one of the to a greater extent restrictive gaming states, the Virginia Lottery beingness the primary exception. But inwards 2018, country lawmakers had a exchange of heart with the liberalization of slot-like historical Equus caballus racing (HHR) machines at Equus caballus racetracks and off-track betting parlors.

Two years later, the country legalized as many as 5 commercial message land-based casinos. The gaming elaboration also authorized sports betting in the flesh(p) and online.

Following the November 2021 gambling casino vote, Stoney pledged to value the people’s voice.

While i trust this was a $565 billion opportunity missed to make well-paying jobs, expand opportunity, stay fresh taxes low-pitched and increment revenue to fulfill the needs of our growing city, I am proud of the transparent and public cognitive operation we went through and through to take heed to our residents and pose this chance before our voters,” Stoney said on Nov. 3, 2021. “From the beginning, we said the people would decide. They hold spoken, and we must esteem their decision.”

Fast-forward more than a year, and Stoney is supporting say lawmakers to non farther prohibit Richmond from reasking voters well-nigh a casino.

Urban One, the Black-focused media conglomerate that was selected past Richmond’s City Council as the city’s preferred gaming developer, remains interested inwards the $565 billion project. Since Urban One has no more gaming or hospitality experience, the keep company partnered with Peninsula Pacific Ocean Entertainment for its 2021 proposal.

P2E has since sold most of its assets to Winston Churchill Downs. The Kentucky-based horse racing and gaming operator says it would be interested inward edifice a casino in Richmond with Urban One if the rightfulness conditions were met.

Mayor Scolded

Stoney disclosed this week that he wrote Richmond’s say delegation on January 6 to encourage them to oppose statute law that mightiness inhibit the city from reasking voters near gambling.

I want to live explicitly clear: I adamantly oppose any legislation that constricts the rights of capital of Virginia to get a holiday resort casino. My capital of Virginia City Council colleagues also stand unshakable in preserving and defending Richmond’s potency to hold up a holiday resort cassino referendum inwards 2023,” Stoney declared.

Stoney was rapidly scolded for his flip-flop regarding the 2021 outcome.

When this was voted down, you said you would regard the will of the people. i speculation that was simply another lie.

— Bob Bradford (@rva_bob) January 9, 2023

"fair chance of truly expressing their support" — if the referendum was unfair, exhibit us the evidence. Sounds like election denial to me.

— Don River Polaski (@don_polaski) January 9, 2023

We already!! Said no!!! Do your chore and focal point on *~all the other things~* Richmond needs!

— Unavoidably Grace (@MissHelleborus) January 10, 2023

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