A Huge $67 Million Provided in Grants by Maryland Live

Maryland Live! Casino opened back in June 2012 and in its three years of operations the money it has provided in state tax revenue has meant that a huge $67 million has been given in grants, with over 1 million of that money being awarded in community grants. All grant money from Maryland Live is generated through the gaming tax placed upon it and is then distributed by the Anne Arundel County Local Development Council, and this is a fine example of how casino tax money can help local communities.

Owned by Cordish Companies the Maryland LIve! Casino has become an extremely popular entertainment center with its great location, between Baltimore and Washington attracting visitors from a wide catchment area, and Joe Weinberg of Cordish Companies is extremely happy with the fact that the gaming tax is being put to good use. He stated that, "We are so proud to see funds of over $67 million generated from Maryland Live! Casino in just three years going to support and enhance worthwhile projects and communities in our area."

Grants amounts and in which direction they are heading in 2016 see the fire department receive $6.9 million, the police department $3.2 million and the community college $1.7 million, as well as improvements being made to the athletic field at Meade High School.

Like with any new casino build in any state of the US there was if course plenty of opposition when proposals for the new casino were introduced, and the usual arguments were rolled out, however numbers don´t lie and it´s hard to argue with how much Maryland Live benefits it´s local community, and not only with tax money. The casino boasts 200 live table games, 4,000 slot machines, retail outlets and many restaurants and bars and many jobs have been created by it, in fact since Maryland Live opened, unemployment has dropped in Anne Arundel County from 6.7% to just 4.8% with the casino now being one of the top 5 employers in the county….and that cannot be argued with.