The Cordish Cos., the company in charge of managing the Waterside entertainment complex in Norfolk, has filed a lawsuit against the City of Norfolk concerning a recent casino development.
As per the allegations stated in the lawsuit, executives from Cordish claimed to possess an agreement that granted them priority in establishing a casino.
Instead, in early 2019, Norfolk formed a partnership with the Pamunkey Indian Tribe to initiate efforts towards casino gambling. This move prompted Cordish officials to immediately start making legal threats.
In November, the casino in Norfolk was ultimately approved by voters, and the Pamunkeys have recently selected a name for the extravagant $500 million resort, which will be known as HeadWaters Resort & Casino.
However, Cordish officials have now filed a formal lawsuit, claiming that the city failed to uphold a previous agreement.
Why Cordish is suing City of Norfolk
Cordish is seeking $100 million in damages, along with punitive damages and legal fees, according to its June 15 submission to the Richmond Circuit Court.
The lawsuit has been filed against the City of Norfolk, as well as the Norfolk Redevelopment and Housing Authority (NRHA) and Bernard Pishko, the City Attorney of Norfolk.
Cordish is seeking a judge’s intervention to nullify the Norfolk-Pamunkey agreement in order to stop the project’s construction. The anticipated opening of the waterfront casino-resort is set for 2025, with its location adjacent to Harbor Park, the Norfolk Tides’ minor league baseball stadium.
In addition to Waterside, Cordish, operating as Norfolk District Associates LLC, successfully revitalized the struggling Waterside entertainment complex in 2013. The complex had been leased from the city and the NRHA.
Cordish faced significant losses in the beginning but managed to successfully revive Waterside and attract tenants. According to company executives, they wouldn’t have undertaken this challenging endeavor had they known that Norfolk wouldn’t support their casino aspirations.
A broken promise from Norfolk officials?
Cordish, the casino operator with establishments in three US states, evidently has a desire to establish a presence in Virginia as well.
Cordish’s proposal fell short in Norfolk and was also the second-place contender in the recent Richmond casino competition.
Cordish claims that it was excluded when Norfolk selected the Pamunkey Indian Tribe as its casino partner.
According to PilotOnline.com:
The lawsuit alleges that the city engaged in efforts to exclude Cordish by advocating for a provision in the state legislation during the final stages of the 2020 legislative session. This provision aimed to prevent the construction of a casino on housing authority-owned property. According to the lawsuit, this last-minute amendment was a desperate attempt to rectify the city and NRHA’s violation of Cordish’s Lease Agreement. Furthermore, the suit claims that Pishko and the city then attempted to conceal this scheme by modifying the exclusivity agreement with the tribe. However, these modifications only applied if they did not interfere with the Cordish contract, despite the city’s prior lobbying for the housing authority clause that eliminated Waterside from consideration for any casino approvals.
Norfolk officials assert that they were not obligated to assist Corish in obtaining a casino.
The Norfolk-Pamunkey agreement, according to them, is not in contradiction with the Waterside lease agreement.
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