SOUTH BLOOMING GROVE, NY—Another proposed casino resort project in Orange County is being advanced. On Wednesday, Baltimore-based The Cordish Cos. and Penn National Gaming of Wyomissing, PA announced that they are partnering on a $750-million gaming facility and resort here.

Orange County officials have reported recently that at least four gaming companies are interested in pursuing as many as five possible gaming ventures and have submitted applications for gaming licenses in New York State. The New York State Gaming Facility Location Board has set a deadline of June 30 for applications for not more than a total of four gaming facilities to be located in the Catskills/Hudson Valley region, the Eastern Southern Tier and the Capital region. Gaming observers have speculated that the Hudson Valley/Catskills region, which includes Orange County and Sullivan and Ulster counties to the north, could secure two gaming facility locations when the Gaming Facility Location Board makes it selections this fall.

Cordish and Penn National are looking to develop the casino resort at a 120-acre undeveloped site adjacent to Route 17. “Our companies are very familiar with one another and have a great deal of mutual respect,” says David Cordish, CEO of The Cordish Cos. “New York will be the beneficiary of the marriage of two proven operators with the strongest balance sheets in the industry and an unparalleled track record in operating regional gaming facilities in competitive environments.”

The firms say they intend to seek local approval for the project that will feature a “world class casino and resort with a hotel and spa, marquee restaurants, and entertainment venues.”

“We're proud to bring together the breadth of our experience in owning and operating 27 facilities in 18 jurisdictions across North America, with one of the world's largest and most respected developers,” says Timothy J. Wilmott, Penn National's CEO. “We look forward to taking full advantage of our respective strengths to the benefit of our host communities and the state.”

Under the terms of an agreement being finalized by Cordish and Penn National, the facility would be owned and managed by a new 50/50 joint venture between the companies and would feature Cordish's Live! brand. Cordish and Penn National are also weighing the feasibility of several potential sites in and around Albany in the Capital region, which would feature Penn National's Hollywood Casino brand.

Officials with Flaum Management Co. of Rochester, NY met with local officials on April 1 at Monroe-Woodbury High School to pitch its estimated $850-million casino resort project to be built on a 121-acre site adjacent to the Harriman Metro-North train station in Woodbury.