Caesars Plans Temporary Virginia Casino a Year Ahead of Opening

A year ahead of its opening of the $650M Caesars Virginia casino resort in Danville, Caesars Entertainment plans to open a temporary casino there in mid-2023. Company execs mentioned the plans during a third-quarter earnings call with investors this week.

“We’ve got temporary casinos in Columbus, Nebraska, (and) Danville, Virginia, that will hit next year,” Caesars Entertainment CEO Thomas Reeg said during the call, according to a transcript. Danville city manager Ken Larking then confirmed the company’s plans in an interview with the Danville Register & Bee.

Caesars Virginia was originally scheduled to open in December 2023. However, in May 2022, that was pushed back to some time in 2024 because of supply chain issues and labor shortages caused by the pandemic.

Caesars revealed no details about the temporary casino. However, it will open somewhere on the future site of Caesars Virginia (the former site of the Dan River textile mill at Schoolfield). It has to by law since that’s the location listed in the casino referendum question Danville voters passed in November 2020.

Virginia’s gaming law allows casino developers to open temporary gaming spaces as their permanent properties are built. Both the HeadWaters Resort & Casino in Norfolk and the Hard Rock Bristol have already done so.

Caesars Virginia is for Casino Lovers

Ground was broken on Caesars Virginia, in August. According to a Caesars press release, plans for the casino include more than 1,300 slot machines, 85 live table games, and 24 electronic table games. A retail sportsbook and a World Series of Poker-themed poker room are also in the works, as are a 2,500-seat concert venue and 40,000 square feet of convention and conference space.

At the time, the company promised it would “be a tourism engine and economic driver for Danville and the broader region.” The permanent venue is expected to generate up to $38 million in tax revenue for the city once it’s up and running.

Another Caesars-EBCI Collab

Caesars Entertainment is partnering in the project with EBCI Holdings, a commercial gaming and hospitality-based company established by the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians. Caesars will serve as the manager of the casino, which it already does for two Harrah’s casinos owned by the North Carolina-based tribe.

In addition, EBCI Holdings purchased Caesars Southern Indiana from the company in December 2020 for $250M. (As part of that agreement, Caesars allowed the company to keep the name through a long-term licensing agreement.)

An unnamed local investor also owns a minority stake in Caesars Virginia.

Danville, located on the North Carolina state line, is 40 miles north of Greensboro, NC, and 50 miles north of Durham, NC.