North Carolina’s Rockingham County Casino Proposal Sparks Local Criticism

Article ByDavid Weir

August 2, 2023

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Posted in: North Carolina Gambling News, US Casino News

A proposed casino in Rockingham County, North Carolina, has sparked heated debate among local residents.

Hundreds gathered at a community meeting to voice their concerns and opposition to the project, which is part of a broader proposed bill by Northa Carolina lawmakers to bring casinos to three counties in the state.

Many residents expressed fears that the casino would bring crime, addiction, and other social problems to the area.

“I don’t want to see our county turn into a mini Las Vegas,” said one resident at the meeting, reflecting a common sentiment among those in attendance.

However, not everyone at the meeting was against the proposal.

One resident also spoke in favor of the casino, pointing out the economic benefits that the state’s tribes have seen from their gambling operations.

“There will be hotels, restaurants, other establishments and shopping,” the Rockingham resident said. “I think it’s a big help to any community it ends up in.”

The Cordish Companies

An interesting aspect to this debate is that the potential casino plans haven’t even been publicly announced yet.   

A company called NC Development Holdings asked the county to rezone a 200-acre plot of earlier this month.

The Cordish Companies, a Pittsburgh-based operator, is heavily rumored to be the real backer behind the bid, say local sources.

The operator last month bought in local dignitaries from Philadelphia to celebrate the positive effects of the bespoke 2% revenue share agreement its Live! Casino Pittsburgh has with the local Westmoreland County.

Such a promotional blitz on a positive story would make sense if one was planning to imminently propose a new casino in a nearby state.

Cordish has also openly contributed to local Rockingham district Senator Phil Berger (R) and his campaigns. He is a vocal supporter of new commercial casinos in North Carolina.

In either case, the economic argument is, as ever, central to the push for any casino project in Rockingham and the other counties.

Berger thinks that a proposed casino in his home district could create up to 1,750 jobs in the rural area, and up to $6 million in taxes a year.

Proponents of the wider bill say that the three proposed casinos could generate almost $1.7 billion in gross wagering revenue annually, contributing hundreds of millions in taxes.

State House Speaker Tim Moore is also backing the casino bill.

“The response that we’re hearing from legislators from those regions has been supportive, because they see it as a way to really spur the economy of their region,” he said earlier this month.

Some Good, Some Bad

Rockingham County residents are almost overwhelmingly opposed to the casino idea. Or at least those in attendance at the meeting.

“We didn’t ask for it,” one attendee said, as reported by WFMY NEWS2. “We’re just asking folks to respect what’s going on in our own neighborhood.”

County Sherriff Sam Page was among the few who took a more balanced view.

“Things associated with gambling, we’re going to see some good and we’re going to see some bad,” he said.

If the outcome is negative in Rockingham County, as is evidently possible, the new bill may also allow operators to look at sites in Anson and Nash counties.

The push for new casinos in North Carolina is seen as a response to growing competition from neighboring states like Virginia, such as the temporary Caesars venue in Danville, just over state lines from Rockingham County.

The proposals aim to boost economic prospects in some of North Carolina’s less-developed counties, particularly those with interstate borders and less than 100,000 residents.