Dec. 18–Officials in Perryville and Cecil County said Monday they are close to finalizing a deal for Great Wolf Lodge to build a $200 million resort on a site in the town just off Interstate 95 and next to Hollywood Casino Perryville.
A 500-room resort would be built on 44 acres next to the casino in Chesapeake Overlook, a site long planned as an entertainment district, Perryville Mayor Robert R. Ashby Jr. and the town commissioners announced. The project is expected to create 450 to 600 jobs when it is completed by the summer of 2022.
The resort, expected to attract a half million visitors a year, would include an indoor/outdoor water park, a rope course and climbing wall, restaurants, shops and a conference center that can hold up to 1,000 people, officials said.
A representative with Chicago-based Great Wolf Resorts, which operates indoor water parks with 19 locations across the U.S., did not confirm the project would be built but said the company sees potential for more resorts in the mid-Atlantic and has been in preliminary talks with Perryville and Cecil County officials about the potential for a future Great Wolf Lodge.
"We feel Perryville could be a nice fit for us and look forward to continued dialogue with city and county officials, as well as the community at large, as we explore the prospect for a Great Wolf Lodge in Maryland," said Jason Lasecki, a spokesman for Great Wolf Resorts, in an email.
"The I-95 corridor running through Maryland is an area of interest to us, and the state's establishment of 'Approved Enterprise Zones' shows its commitment to new business development in the state," he said. "There is no question the designation of Perryville as one of the 'Approved Enterprise Zones' will be a significant consideration as we further evaluate this opportunity."
Chris Moyer, economic development director for Cecil County, said the deal has not yet been finalized, but that officials have worked "extensively" with the resort developers and "we feel that this is the site for them. We've developed a very good working relationship with them."
Moyer said the project would have enormous economic development and tourism potential for Perryville and surrounding towns in Cecil County, such as Chesapeake City, Port Deposit and Northeast.
"Great Wolf is a very strong brand from a tourism standpoint, and it's going to be a huge job generator and will be a great economic anchor, literally visible right off I-95," Moyer said.
The town reached out to Chicago-based Great Wolf Resorts, which opened its first location in Wisconsin in 1997 and operates its closest resorts in Williamsburg, Va., and the Poconos Mountains in Pennsylvania. The original resort in Wisconsin now offers 76,000 square feet of water park attractions, a project the company has sought to replicate throughout the U.S.
Aside from water parks, the resorts typically include specialty restaurants, arcades, spas and other children's activities.
"I've been working hard to bring excitement to our town… meetings and conversations I can finally talk about," Ashby said in the announcement. "This is a great opportunity for all of us and only the beginning."
The Cecil County Council is slated to consider resolutions Tuesday to offer Great Wolf personal property and hotel tax credits, Moyer said.
The 44 acres is part of a 150-acre parcel owned by the Stewart Cos., a developer of the nearby Principio Business Park, which is home to Amazon and Restoration Hardware distribution centers.
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