Jan 12, 2024 By Mike Jones 3 min read

Washington County is expected to receive its largest allocation of Local Share Account casino gambling revenue in 14 years.

The state Department of Community and Economic Development notified county officials Tuesday that they would be receiving $9.2 million in gaming funds to distribute to various municipal and community projects as part of the annual LSA program.

It is the most money allocated to Washington County for its LSA program since 2010 when it received $9.7 million that year. Since that time, the money available has averaged between $6 and $8 million, meaning this year’s allotment will be able to fund more projects than previous cycles.

“It’s a reflection of greater revenue in gaming, and that reflects to more money that we’ll be able to distribute through projects,” said Bob Griffin, who is executive director of the Redevelopment Authority of Washington County that oversees distribution of the LSA funds.

The LSA money comes from a slice of gambling money from Hollywood Casino at the Meadows in North Strabane, which saw an increase in revenue last year. Griffin said more money coming in means they’ll be able to fund additional projects, which all must be met with matching dollars from the applicant.

“Not only the revenue that is coming from gaming, but the leveraged funds – both public and private – that really increases the impact with the match requirement,” Griffin said.

A list of the applications for the projects vying for LSA money is expected to be released today. The projects are lumped into different categories, which include community improvement, economic development, job training and public interest focusing on water and sewage upgrades.

County Commission Chairman Nick Sherman was ecstatic about the amount of money that is available for projects in this round for the LSA distribution to help numerous communities across the county.

“We’re excited for the opportunity we have in Washington County (with) the LSA money,” Sherman said. “This has truly been a blessing for the county for economic development and communities that otherwise wouldn’t be able to afford these projects.”

The county’s LSA Committee is scheduled to hold hearings Tuesday and Wednesday to review all applications before making a recommendation to the county commissioners for final approval. Once that happens, the Redevelopment Authority will submit its single application for the projects to the DCED by March 31.

The county has received more than $130 million in gaming funds for the LSA program since it began in 2008, which averages out to nearly $7.7 million per year.