Horseshoe Casino Baltimore has been experiencing a massive overhaul that will hopefully help the casino deal with the difficulties it has been facing in recent years.
In an effort to get back the market share it lost to its major competitors in the region – Live! Casino Hotel Maryland and MGM National Harbor, Horseshoe Casino Baltimore gave the official start to a redevelopment called the “Walk @ Warner Street”. The latter extends south from the home of NFL’s Baltimore Ravens – M&T Bank Stadium – to Horseshoe Baltimore. A Topgolf driving range featuring a sports lounge and a restaurant has recently started operation in the district, while an indoor concert facility called The Paramount Baltimore is scheduled for an opening in the summer of 2023.
The project, which is being headed by Caesars Entertainment and the casino’s ownership group, is expected to eventually lead to a nightlife and entertainment district surrounding the gaming venue.
As revealed by Horseshoe Casino Baltimore, part of its “Walk @ Warner Street” redevelopment includes a hotel situated across Warner Street. The overhaul process included the recently executed demolition of some blighted warehouses purchased by Caesars Entertainment.
At the time when the $442-million Horseshoe Casino Baltimore started operation in August 2014, Caesars Entertainment believed it would boost the economic activity in the region. Unfortunately, the high crime rates in the city have been the reason why developers have not been much interested in making new investments there. In recent years, the casino property has seen a decline in its annual gaming revenue after setting an all-time table games and slot machines revenue record of $324.3 million in 2016. Last year, its annual revenue was estimated at $208.8 million.
The Hotel Could Be Established as Part of the Casino Complex or Not
Horseshoe Casino Baltimore’s general manager Randy Conroy revealed that although the construction at the “Walk @ Warner Street”, including The Paramount, a Yards Social Bar, and retail stores, is currently underway and is moving fast, the company would not rush with the construction of the hotel component of the project.
Mr. Conroy has revealed that the entertainment district is now more focused on creating a new nightlife destination before proceeding with the hotel venue. He shared that the company found it important to get The Paramount and Topgolf up and running as a priority. Once these assets are ready for operation and the company sees how things go there, it would go on with further development. The general manager of Horseshoe Casino Baltimore also explained that Caesars Entertainment has still not decided whether it will seek to establish a hotel on its own and make it part of the Horseshoe casino complex, or whether it will look for an outside developer to partner with and build a hotel that is not associated with the casino venue.
According to Mr. Conroy, who revealed that the company was having conceptual meetings with various people, it would be great to get a hotel venue under construction in the next few years.
Currently, Horseshoe Casino Baltimore is one of the three full-scale casinos in the state of Maryland, along with MGM National Harbor and Live! Casino Hotel Maryland. There are three other casinos in the state – Hollywood Perryville, Flintstone-based Rocky Gap, and Ocean Downs in Berlin – that are smaller resort-style casinos.
