Norfolk Readying to Field New Casino Bids Should HeadWaters Plan Bust

Norfolk prepares for new casino offering if HeadWaters plans fail

Norfolk officials are preparing to develop a new proposal for a commercial casino resort in Hampton Roads, Virginia, if the city's current plans with its preferred gambling partner don't work out.

Nearly three and a half years since Norfolk voters approved a proposed project called HeadWaters Resort & Casino, a construction site east of the city's Harbor Park minor league baseball stadium remains untouched. The developers behind the casino, the Pamunkey Indian Tribe and Golden Eagle Consulting, are still completing the project after the city rejected their proposed two-phase construction plan last year.

If they don’t come forward, we will send someone to take their place,” Norfolk City Attorney Bernard Pishko told The Virginian-Pilot.

The 2020 development agreement between the city and the Pamunkey Tribe requires the casino to obtain a gaming license from the Virginia Lottery by November 2025. As that date approaches, Norfolk Council is preparing its next steps in case HeadWaters fails to complete plans to meet the city's wishes by November 2025 and is deemed to have been awarded a pokies, table games and sports betting license. approve.

Only the state Legislature can extend the November 2025 deadline. Virginia’s Casino Act of 2020 states that an approved casino referendum will be canceled if the project does not receive a gaming license within five years of approval.

Norfolk Casino Background Story

Norfolk voters approved a casino resort proposed by the Pamunkey Indian Tribe in 2020. Under state legislation, the city has the opportunity to own a casino resort.Norfolk is one of five cities to receive a casino license to stimulate local economic development.

City officials joined forces with the Pamunkey Tribe, a federally recognized tribe that owns a small reservation about 65 miles northwest of King William Norfolk. The tribe has fewer than 500 members.

Despite having no gambling experience, Norfolk joined the tribe to allay concerns that the Pamunkey family might open a tribal casino on its federal land, which could dampen business at the town's commercial casinos and reduce its tax advantages. Some believe a tribal casino would further reduce non-gaming development around Norfolk casinos.

The tribe has partnered with Jon Yarbrough, a billionaire who made his fortune in Indian slot machines, to finance the $500 million resort and maintain ownership of the property. While HeadWaters is a commercial enterprise, Yarbrough's Golden Eagle Consulting firm's contract terms were approved by the U.S. Department of the Interior to ensure fairness to tribes.

Design Headwind

HeadWaters suffered multiple design setbacks.

The original idea was to build a casino along the Elizabeth River, with a temporary casino at Harbor Park generating revenue for the project. Those plans were scrapped after it was discovered that Virginia's 2020 Casino Act would not allow casino gambling at Harbor Park, which has a different mailing address than the parking lot where Norfolk voters approved the construction of HeadWaters.

Virginia’s casino law regarding temporary gaming structures states: “Temporary casino gambling shall be conducted at the same location mentioned in the referendum.” Norfolk voters approved casino gambling via a ballot question only “on property east of Harbor Park Stadium… The approximate address is 200 Park Avenue."

The Pamunkeys and Golden Eagle subsequently proposed a two-phase development plan, first a casino and then a hotel and resort. The concept was rejected by city officials, who said their agreement with the developer called for the resort complex to be "completely constructed immediately."

The tribe started again when the state of Virginia provided significant funding for Norfolk's coastal storm risk management program. The $2.6 billion infrastructure project includes the construction of a 17-foot-tall flood wall with Elizabeth.

The flood wall required HeadWaters to completely revise its design and remove a once-planned pier that would have allowed boaters to dock and visit the casino. The resort's riverside hotels also had to be moved inland.