Rosie's Gaming Emporium Explained

Rosie's Gaming Emporium
Industry:Gambling
Hq Location City:New Kent, Virginia
Hq Location Country:United States
Num Locations:7
Num Locations Year:2023
Area Served:Virginia, United States
Owner:Churchill Downs, Inc.

Rosie's Gaming Emporium is a chain of gambling parlors in the U.S. state of Virginia, owned by Churchill Downs, Inc. and affiliated with its Colonial Downs racetrack. The Rosie's brand was established in 2019. As of 2023, there are seven Rosie's locations throughout Virginia, including a parlor at Colonial Downs in New Kent; five standalone parlors in Dumfries, Emporia, Hampton, Richmond, and Vinton; and a Rosie's Game Room in Collinsville within a Quality Inn hotel. A $389-million Rosie's property called The Rose Gaming Resort is under construction in Dumfries.

Rosie's parlors offer off-track betting and historical horse racing machines that resemble slot machines and allow betting on archived horse races.[1] They do not feature any table games or traditional slot machines.

History

The background of Rosie's can be traced to 1992, when Virginia authorized up to six off-track betting (OTB) parlors to be operated by the state's yet-to-be-built horse track, subject to local referendum in each city or county.[2] The first OTB parlor opened in 1996,[3] ahead of Colonial Downs's opening in 1997.[4] In 2004, the number of allowed parlors was increased to ten.[5] [6] In 2014, Colonial Downs closed and ended its OTB operations.[7] [8]

In 2018, Virginia enacted a law to authorize historical horse racing machines at Colonial Downs and its OTB parlors, in an effort to make it economically viable to reopen the track.[9] The Virginia Racing Commission subsequently adopted regulations capping the total number of machines in the state at 3,000.[10]

The first Rosie's location was opened at Colonial Downs in New Kent on April 23, 2019, with 600 machines.[11] [12] Three standalone Rosie's locations opened later in 2019, with the Vinton location opening on May 9,[13] the Richmond location on July 1,[14] and the Hampton location on October 29.[15] These first parlors were opened in localities where voters had previously approved off-track betting.

Voters in Dumfries approved off-track betting in November 2019, giving Rosie's access to the populous Northern Virginia market.[16] Construction on the fifth Rosie's Gaming Emporium in Dumfries began in 2020,[17] and the location opened on January 8, 2021.[18] Later that year, on July 22, Rosie's opened its sixth location, a 37-machine parlor at a Quality Inn hotel in Collinsville, branded as Rosie's Game Room.[19] [20]

In 2022 Colonial Downs's parent company, Peninsula Pacific Entertainment, sold the bulk of its assets, including Rosie's and Colonial Downs, to Churchill Downs, Inc.[21] [22]

A seventh location in Emporia opened on September 25, 2023.[23]

The Rose Gaming Resort

On February 15, 2021 a proposal was revealed by Colonial Downs for a $389 million Rosie's-branded gaming resort called The Rose Gaming Resort, which would stand on the site of the Potomac Landfill in Dumfries and be the only gaming resort in Northern Virginia.[24] The Dumfries Town Council approved the project on September 21, 2021.[25] Construction of the resort began in January 2022 as the landfill closed, with plans to open in late 2023 and total completion of the two phases expected in 2026. The resort will feature a 50,000-sq-ft gaming facility, 305 hotel rooms, 8 restaurants, a theater, and conference rooms, with the remaining unused 79 acres being converted into a park.[26] [27]

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Rosie's Gaming Emporium previews its historical horse racing machines before the Vinton site's grand opening. The Roanoke Timesfirst=Alice. Petska. April 19, 2019. October 19, 2022.
  2. News: Off-track betting bill signed. Richmond Times-Dispatch. April 7, 1992. Newspapers.com.
  3. News: OTB horseplay begins. Daily Press. Newport News, VA. February 18, 1996. William Burnham. Newspapers.com. (Part 2 of article)
  4. News: Racing returns after 150-year absence. The Virginian-Pilot. September 2, 1997. Matthew Dolan. Holly Heyser. NewsBank.
  5. News: House votes to allow more betting parlors. Richmond Times-Dispatch. March 2, 2004. Pamela Stallsmith. Newspapers.com.
  6. Web site: 2004 Session: SB 167 Racing Commission; authorized to increase number of satellite facilities. Virginia's Legislative Information System. 2023-11-04.
  7. News: New Colonial Downs owner plans 10 off-track betting sites across Virginia, but new gambling rules remain unclear. Richmond Times-Dispatch. June 22, 2018. Graham Moomaw. 2023-11-04.
  8. News: Colonial Downs at the finish line. Richmond Times-Dispatch. October 27, 2014. Ted Strong. NewsBank.
  9. News: Northam signs legislation aimed at reopening Colonial Downs, ordering 'reasonable limitations on the proliferation of gaming in Virginia'. Richmond Times-Dispatch. Michael Martz. April 9, 2018. 2018-04-28.
  10. News: Virginia commission OKs 3,000 historical horseracing machines. Daily Racing Form. October 5, 2018. Matt. Hegarty. October 15, 2023.
  11. Web site: Chesapeake could get 700 slot-style gambling machines if Rosie's Gaming Emporium opens. The Virginian-Pilot. Kimberly. Pierceall. January 26, 2019. October 19, 2022.
  12. Web site: Rosie’s Gaming Emporium now open at Colonial Downs. 13 News Now. April 23, 2019. October 19, 2022.
  13. Web site: Rosie's Gaming Emporium opens in Vinton. WDBJ 7. Joe. Dashiell. May 9, 2019. October 19, 2022.
  14. Web site: Rosie’s Gaming Emporium opens Richmond location. WTVR 6 News Richmond. Vernon Jr.. Freeman. July 1, 2019. October 19, 2022.
  15. Web site: Rosie’s Gaming Emporium is now open in Hampton. WAVY.com. Jane. Alvarez-Wertz. October 29, 2019. October 19, 2022.
  16. News: Dumfries voters approve pari-mutuel betting. Prince William Times. November 5, 2019. Daniel Berti. 2023-11-04.
  17. Web site: Rosie’s Gaming Emporium eyes January opening. Prince William Times. Jill. Palermo. November 17, 2020. October 19, 2022.
  18. Web site: New Gambling Hall, Rosie's, Now Open in Northern Virginia. NBC 4 Washington. January 10, 2021. October 19, 2022.
  19. News: Legal "slot-like gaming machines" have arrived in Henry County. Martinsville Bulletin. July 21, 2021. Bill. Wyatt. October 15, 2023.
  20. News: Churchill Downs Incorporated buying company that owns every Rosie's Gaming Emporium. WSLS-TV. February 22, 2022. Jeff. Williamson. October 15, 2023.
  21. News: Kentucky's Churchill Downs to acquire parent company of Colonial Downs, Rosie's. Richmond Times-Dispatch. February 22, 2022. Michael Phillips. 2022-06-19.
  22. Churchill Downs Incorporated completes acquisition of substantially all of the assets of Peninsula Pacific Entertainment. Churchill Downs, Inc.. November 1, 2022. 2022-12-17. GlobeNewswire.
  23. News: Rosie's Gaming officially open. Independent-Messenger. Emporia, VA. September 27, 2023. Kayla Hardersen. 2023-10-15.
  24. Web site: Colonial Downs proposing gaming resort in Dumfries. InsideNova. February 15, 2021. October 19, 2022.
  25. Web site: UPDATED: Dumfries Town Council approves ‘The Rose’. Prince William Times. Daniel. Berti. September 21, 2021. October 19, 2022.
  26. Web site: Rose Gaming Resort breaks ground in Dumfries for Northern Virginia's first large casino. ABC 13 News. Tom. Roussey. January 11, 2022. October 19, 2022.
  27. Web site: The Rose Gaming Resort in Virginia Begins Construction, as 37-Year Landfill Closes. Casino.org. Devin. O'Connor. January 29, 2022. October 19, 2022.

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