The Cordish Cos which owns the Maryland Live casino announced earlier this month plans to develop a $200 million hotel and event center which would open in the first quarter of 2018. The new hotel would be developed on the same property as the Maryland Live casino and provide competition to the proposed MGM National Harbor casino in Prince George’s County.

The Cordish Cos confirmed on September 21 that they have also acquired the former Hilton Garden Inn and Homewood Suites in Hanover and would spend around $3 million to renovate the property which is located at 7491 New Ridge Road, across Route 100 from the Arundel Mills mall. The hotel has already been rebranded to Live! Lofts and is not very far from the Maryland Live casino. The company confirmed that the hotel will continue to be open during the renovation work.

In a statement, Rob Norton, president of Maryland Live said “The customers went to bed under one brand and woke up under another. All the signs were replaced on the first day. They are all over. We are planning to renovate the whole thing and turn it into a place with an eclectic elegance. We’ve got a little over a year before our hotel is ready. This will allow us to start serving our casino guests yesterday”.

Cordish Cos. acquired the former Hilton Garden Inn from the Buccini/Pollin Group of Washington, D.C but did not disclose the amount it paid for the property or the terms and conditions attached to the acquisition. The former Hilton hotel complex is an 11 storey building that has 250 rooms, which includes over 100 suites and an indoor pool. The Maryland state tax office valued the property at $27.1 million.

The $200 million hotel facility that Cordish Cos is developing will focus mostly on Maryland Live casino’s one million reward members. The new Live! Lofts facility will cater to casino guests but also non-casino customers. Since Live! Lofts is located in the corridor of the Baltimore-Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport, the hotel will operate a free shuttle service to the airport, train stations in the area and the casino.

Norton admits that attracting non-casino customers is not part of the company’s core business strategy but they are excited about the possibility of introducing more customers to the Live! brand. Cordis Cos is also opening other Live! facilities in Arlington, Texas and in the stadium district in Philadelphia. Cordish Cos chairman David Cordish stated that the Live! brand offered customers amenities and services with a very live entertainment atmosphere.