West Virginia casino could witness revenue decline due to increased competition

These days, there are many gambling options in Maryland, including the new MGM National Harbor casino, that are drawing business and profits away from the Charles Town casino.

According to the West Virginia Lottery, in the first two weeks since the $1.4 million National Harbor casino opened, video lottery revenues at Hollywood Casino are down about $670,000, or 19.5 percent, and table gambling revenues have dropped 22 percent, or about $214,000.

Hollywood Casino Senior Vice President of Public Affairs Eric Schippers said that the casino knew the day when MGM National Harbor was coming and prepared for it.

“We prepared well in advance by reinvesting in our business to remain competitive. Over the last few years we have built a new hotel, completely refreshed our slot machine offerings, added a new entertainment venue featuring top performers, and built new restaurants and added new amenities for our Asian guests,” he said.

According to Schippers, Hollywood Casino at Charles Town has no plans for any staffing changes despite their loss of business. While he admits they expect a roughly 20 percent drop in 2017 revenues in Charles Town, they still feel that they will “remain competitive.”