As Norfolk is slowly making progress in its negotiations with a developer over the long run on line casino plans, a authorized battle began by one other metropolis’s enterprise companion over the on line casino growth rights remains to be in court docket.
The Baltimore-based developer Cordish Corporations took the town to court docket in 2021, arguing that Norfolk violated its contract and actively sought to exclude the waterside space subsequent to Harbor Park from being the location that will host a on line casino. Final 12 months, the litigation was dismissed by a Richmond decide, however Cordish Corporations appealed the ruling.
At a listening to that came about on July twelfth in Virginia’s Appellate Courtroom, the events argued over the language of the 2013 Cordish Corporations contract with the town and the Norfolk Redevelopment and Housing Authority.
The event operator’s authorized consultant, legal professional John Lynch, defined that the scope of the Waterside lease language relating to the institution of a possible on line casino was not taken under consideration by the trial court docket. The corporate initially argued that it might have by no means agreed on the present situations of the deal if the town had not additionally agreed to offer some monetary assist to Cordish Corporations’ on line casino bid. Lawyer Lynch shared that the corporate would have by no means agreed to make a $43-million funding if the town of Norfolk had not agreed to subsidize the mission.
Norfolk Sport Permission to Pamunkey Indians’ Land Deal Again in 2019
Beneath the provisions of the Waterside lease settlement of the Norfolk District Associates, neither the town nor the Norfolk Redevelopment and Housing Authority would subsidize or present any grants for an leisure and eating space growth of greater than 75,000 sq. toes just like the mission for a complete of 10 years.
In court docket filings, the town of Norfolk argued that the Waterside lease by no means allowed for the place for use as a on line casino, so it couldn’t be thought of the identical because the HeadWaters Resort and On line casino mission.
Town of Norfolk gave the inexperienced mild to a land cope with the Pamunkey Indian Tribe in 2019, with that transfer getting ready the stage for the event of the HeadWaters Resort and On line casino located in shut proximity to Harbor Park. Within the following 12 months, metropolis voters gave their approval to a referendum in search of to permit playing on the proposed location. Nevertheless, in 2023, negotiations over the on line casino have confronted quite a few obstacles and plans for the on line casino mission haven’t been formally permitted.
Now, the town of Norfolk claims that whereas the Waterside lease contract opens the possibility for negotiations to amend the lease if state lawmakers carry some adjustments to playing legal guidelines to permit gaming on the location, that didn’t occur, so the town has no obligation to subsidize the corporate and assist it get hold of state Authorities approvals for a on line casino.
The authorized motion seeks damages totalling $100 million. There is no such thing as a deadline for the court docket to make a remaining ruling on the litigation. As defined by a metropolis spokesperson, in the meanwhile, the lease settlement at Waterside between Norfolk District Associates and the Norfolk Redevelopment and Housing Authority stays in full impact.
