State, county look to act on Arundel slots on Dec. 7

Dec. 7 is shaping up as a pivotal day for a proposed slots casino at Arundel Mills Mall.

A divided Anne Arundel County Council had already planned to take up two zoning bills that night -- one which would allow slots at the mall, the other which would not.

Now comes word that the state commission awarding slots licenses will meet the same day, starting just two hours before the county council is scheduled to convene.

At its last meeting, the state commission appeared poised to approve the Arundel Mills site but tabled a motion it so that absent commission members could take part in the discussion.

With 4,750 machines, the Anne Arundel site would likely be the state's most lucrative and one of the largest slots casinos in the country.

Proponents of the mall site are hoping an affirmative vote from the state will nudge the council to approve zoning, which has turned into a major hurdle for the project, proposed by Baltimore-based Cordish Cos.

The state and county panels had been at odds about which body should act first. The state now seems willing to do, if only by a couple of hours.

Zoning legislation has languished for months before the council, but members on both sides of the debate now say they are eager for a resolution.