Atlantic City will be breathing a collective sigh of relief after plans for Maryland to add a sixth casino business were shelved for the moment after a working panel failed to reach a consensus on a new venue. The idea was to build a new venue in Prince George’s County with legislative approval then given later this summer and a final public meeting was supposed to rubber stamp the working panel decision. Although John Morton III, the chairman of the group, admitted in a letter: “After thorough and exhaustive discussion it became clear that these members’ reservations were insurmountable.”
Gov. Martin O’Malley (D) has said before that a special session would be convened if a consensus was reached and this is still not out of the question. Raquel Guillory, spokesperson for O’Malley’s office, added: “The governor reserves the right to call a special session on this issue or any other important issues confronting the state.”
It hits MGM Resorts International’s plans hard after they had agreed to build an $800 million casino resort at the 350-acre National Harbor site. Chairman Jim Murren released a statement, saying: “MGM Resorts is committed to Maryland and our interest in National Harbor is unabated. MGM Resorts remains keenly interested in building a world-class destination resort at National Harbor; a project that will bring significant investment, tax revenue, and much-needed jobs to the state.”
UK boyband One Direction have been thrown out of a string of Las Vegas casinos and denied entry to others as they’re all underage. The Sun reports that the five lads, all under 21, have tried to enter a number of venues, with a source admitting: “The boys were hoping to go wild in Vegas by boozing and gambling into the early hours. But security at every casino in town knew who the lads were and threw them out. Finding out the hotel suite they had ordered wasn’t the one in The Hangover was also pretty annoying”. Maybe you’ll have better luck when you’re 21!
