Mohegan Sun announced Tuesday plans to add a 200,000-square-foot entertainment, shopping, and dining destination at the resort casino’s flagship Uncasville property.
The project, dubbed The Downtown District, will feature a pavilion of artisan food, a 14-screen movie theater, a retro-inspired bowling and dining facility, and a promenade of retail shops. With construction starting later this year, Mohegan expects to open the destination in early 2015.
The project will be developed in partnership with The Hampshire Companies and The Bronson Companies, both experienced retail developers.
Mohegan’s main in-state rival, Foxwoods Resort Casino in Mashantucket, announced plans in February 2012 to build a 312,000-square-foot outlet mall on its Connecticut property. Construction has yet to begin on that upgrade.
Both Foxwoods and Mohegan Sun are facing increasing competition from in the Northeast gambling market, where they once held a duopoly. Both have upgraded their properties, and Mohegan has diversified by adding properties in Pennsylvania and New Jersey. Mohegan and Foxwoods are vying for licenses to open up resort casinos in Massachusetts, which will approve four gaming establishments by mid-2014.
