New Maryland Casino

Despite years and years of public debate, both negative and positive, as well as many set backs along the road from initial proposition to final construction, it seems as though the Hollywood Casino Perryville will finally open. The 1,500-machine casino, located in the northeastern corner of Maryland in a city named Perryville, is scheduled to officially open for business next Thursday.

Despite some major landscaping that still needs to be finished, the casino is still on track to open as scheduled. Governor Martin O’Malley, a democrat, will be attending the casino’s grand opening. Governor O’Malley is a known supporter of gambling and championed the slots program in the state of Maryland. He is up for reelection in less than six weeks.

The Perryville casino features of variety of video screen-style slot machines. While some of these machines are designed to look like old-fashioned versions, most of the machines incorporate modern-day culture and themes into their designs, which include Sex & the City and Jeff Foxworthy’s Redneck Rumble.

The casino floor has a number of electronic table games, which are machines that are designed to simulate three-card poker, blackjack, and roulette, but without the cards, chips, or wheel.

Another casino is set to open at Ocean Downs Racetrack, located on the Eastern Shore. Although its owners had originally advertised a Memorial Day 2010 opening, this had to be pushed back to December 16 as a result of asbestos and construction problems. The Oceans Downs Racetrack casino will open with 750 machines, with plans to eventually have 800.

The plans for Maryland’s two largest casinos, which would be located in Anne Arundel County and Baltimore, are still undetermined. In Anne Arundel, voters will decide in November whether to allow a zoning bill that is needed for the construction of the casino, while in Baltimore, the developers of the planned casino have appealed the rejection of their application.

The development of the Hollywood Casino Perryville was the result of a ballot referendum that was authorized by voters in November 2008. “We’re glad to see a facility opening,” said Donald C. Fry, chairman of the commission that is charged with selecting Maryland’s slots sites. “We think this is what the voters of Maryland asked for.” A soft launch of the casino is scheduled for this coming Saturday, and during this time, invited guests will be able to get a first look at the casino before its official opening. Proceeds of the soft launch event will benefit local charities.

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