Casinos in Maryland finished 2015 strong, hitting one of their highest ever revenue tallies in the month of December.
According to the Maryland Lottery and Gaming Control Agency, the state’s five casinos generated revenue of just under $95.2m in December. That’s less than the $99m peak set in July 2015 but 11% higher than December 2014’s total.
As usual, Maryland Live claimed the biggest slice of the revenue pie. The casino generated $54.1m in December, up 7.9% year-on-year. But Horseshoe Casino Baltimore claimed the month’s biggest percentage gain, rising 19% to $27.2m, just shy of the 17-month-old property’s personal best of $27.5m in August.
As for the state’s also-rans, Hollywood Perryville was up 5% to $6.3m, Ocean Downs rose 15% to $3.8m and Rocky Gap gained 14% to $3.5m.
For the 2015 calendar year, Maryland Live reported revenue of $629.7m, more than twice the Horseshoe’s $289.4m. Hollywood Casino Perryville reported $77.3m, Ocean Downs earned $55.9m and Rocky Gap eked out $46m. All told, the state’s total take came to just under $1.1b, up 8.4% over 2014’s haul.
Meanwhile, Horseshoe Baltimore has been hit with a federal racketeering suit for allegedly failing to hire enough minority contractors while the casino was under construction. The suit was filed on Thursday by Celestial Concrete Inc, the Maryland Business Clergy Partnership and a John Doe.
The suit accuses the casino of fraud for accepting federal funds from the US Housing & Urban Development Department, which requires recipients to use a percentage of that funding to hire minority-run businesses and provide employment and training for low-income individuals.
Horseshoe Baltimore issued a statement on Monday saying it “vehemently denies” the allegations. A similar suit was filed last year against MGM National Harbor, the state’s sixth and final casino, which is slated to open in the second half of 2016.
