The nature of casino gambling has changed since William Boasberg started as an executive with Bally's in New Orleans in 1995. The casino experience — the games, the glitz — has moved closer to Main Street.

“Nearly all states now offer some type of gaming, and it has become another form of entertainment, either for day trips or for extended stays,” said Boasberg, 45, general manager of the $1.3 billion MGM National Harbor casino and resort, scheduled to open near the end of this year.

These days, casino resorts seek to entice more than gamblers.

“We believe we will appeal to regional visitors looking to celebrate important milestones such as a wedding, birthday, anniversary, family reunion and other special events,” said Boasberg, an MGM Resorts International veteran with an accounting background who most recently served as senior vice president and chief financial officer of ARIA Resort & Casino in Las Vegas.

He's overseen financial strategies at The Mirage, New York-New York, Luxor and Excalibur. Early in his career he was a consultant for accounting firm KPMG in Dallas.

The industry's rapid growth in Maryland poses a challenge for MGM to distinguish this casino, the state's sixth, from the rest.

The casino's strategy seems to lie in its location and approach. Located just south of Washington near where Interstate 95 crosses the Woodrow Wilson Bridge, MGM is taking direct aim at Virginia, across the Potomac River, where there are no casinos, as well as Washington and Maryland.

It also is targeting domestic and international tourists to the capital region.

It hopes to distinguish itself with amenities, said Boasberg.

Opening with a 23-story hotel with 308 rooms and suites, MGM National Harbor will be “the first luxury casino resort in the state,” Boasberg said. “While we will have a casino, the focus at MGM National Harbor will be the entire resort experience.”

Rocky Gap Casino Resort near Cumberland is the only other Maryland casino with a hotel. The Cordish Cos., owners of Maryland Live, are planning an upscale, 300-suite hotel and conference center at the site, adjacent to the Arundel Mills mall in Hanover.

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