Maryland Live! Casino opens Wednesday

HANOVER, Md - Maryland Live! Casino will open Wednesday night in Hanover at the Arundel Mills Mall and casino officials say it's the closest thing to being in Las Vegas without actually traveling there.

Maryland Live! will be more than twice as large as any property in Maryland and casino officials say it will be one of the largest casinos in the country.

The 330,000-square-foot Maryland Live! casino project broke ground in January of 2011.

David Cordish, chairman of The Cordish Cos., told The Washington Post that the casino will be an “economic engine for the state,” and will bring in about a half a billion dollars in taxes per year while spending more than $60 million a year on goods and services.

“It will be very dramatic for Anne Arundel County and the neighboring community,” Cordish told The Washington Post. “It’s a tourist destination.”

Since January 2011, the company hired 2,500 to construct the casino. Cordish says the property will employ around 1,500 employees when it opens Wednesday night.

Maryland Live! Casino will open Rams Head Center Stage sometime between July and October.

But that is just the beginning of what the Maryland Live! Casino has to offer. Restaurants will be another huge attraction for thousands of guests. Bobby Flay's, Bobby’s Burger Palace, from celebrated chef Bobby Flay, The Cheesecake Factory® and Baltimore-based Phillips® Seafood will join the Live! Market Buffet and as well as Asian chain, Noodles.

Maryland Live! Casino will be open Sunday through Thursday from 8:00 a.m. – 2:00 a.m.; and Friday and Saturday from 8:00 a.m. – 4:00 a.m.

Casino guests must be 21 years of age.