Live! Casino & Hotel Philadelphia celebrates first year

The Cordish Companies has celebrated the first anniversary of Live! Casino & Hotel Philadelphia.

US.- Live! Casino & Hotel Philadelphia has celebrated its first year and the City of Philadelphia has even declared February 11 as Live! Day. The Cordish Companies said the venue had contributed more than $325m to the local and state economies in its first 12 months.

That includes over $91m in taxes to the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, $51.9m in compensation for team members, and more than $81m in jackpot pay-outs to guests. The opening of the facility represented an investment of more than $700m and created over 1,300 new, permanent jobs, with over 54 per cent of team members residing in the City of Philadelphia.

The Cordish Companies’ chairman David Cordish, principals Jon and Reed Cordish and COO Zed Smith, along with Cordish Gaming Group president Rob Norton, and executive vice president Joe Billhimer were joined at a media and community celebration by Philadelphia City representative Sheila Hess and Philadelphia City councilmember Mark Squilla.

The celebration featured special appearances by former Philadelphia Eagles long snapper and magician Jon Dorenbos, and Mummers champions, the South Philadelphia String Band. There was a giant four-tier anniversary cake created by Termini Brothers Bakery.

“We’re so proud of the positive impact that we’ve made on our local communities during our first year in business and thank the City of Philadelphia for their kind recognition,” said David Cordish. “We kept our promise to create a world-class destination, which has also proven to be an economic driver for the Greater Philadelphia region.”

“As a family-owned company, we consider the community to be extended members of the Live! family. We’re proud to be able to provide jobs and support local businesses, in addition, to contributing directly to the organizations helping to better the lives of those around us,” added Joe Billhimer. “We look forward to continuing this support during year two, and beyond.”

See also: Cordish sells three casino properties to real estate investment trust