News Roundup: Week of Aug. 31- Sept. 6

GlobalHue Joins Peebles’ Queens Aqueduct Project

GlobalHue (No. 1 on the B.E. Advertising Agencies list with $379.5 million in billings) has been named as the lead marketing firm for the proposed MGM Grand at Aqueduct in Queens, New York, announced R. Donahue Peebles, the lead developer in the team vying for the right to build New York City’s first gaming venue.

“We are excited about the opportunity to apply our strategic thinking, innovative tactics, brilliant creative skills, and significant experience with the MGM Grand brand to ensure the success of the MGM Grand at Aqueduct,” said Global Hue Chairman and CEO Don Coleman in a statement. “Much of GlobalHue’s success comes from the firm’s diverse make up, which is a perfect complement to the diversity of the Peebles-led team.”

The team also includes MGM Mirage as operator of the facility, Perini Building Co., and Harbinger Capital Partners.
The addition of GlobalHue is the latest step taken by Peebles, CEO of The Peebles Corp. (No. 79 on the B.E. Industrial/Service 100 list with $51.4 million in revenues) in a process that has had its share of setbacks. In May, plans stalled amid reports that Delaware North Cos., the company’s partner, couldn’t raise the $370 million necessary to get the project off the ground.

According to news reports, New York Gov. David Paterson will be naming the aqueduct gaming operator within the next two weeks. Other than Peebles Development, five companies have bid on the 30-year contract to operate the gaming facility, including Penn National Gaming and SL Green Realty Trust (with Hard Rock Entertainment), a company in which its investors include Caribbean CAGE L.L.C., owned by Bob Johnson’s RLJ Companies.

The MGM Grand at Aqueduct complex will include a gaming facility with 4,500 video lottery terminals, an upscale, full-service hotel, a business conference center, an event center, and dining facilities. It will create nearly 4,000 construction and permanent jobs and produce approximately $17 billion in revenue for the State of New York and $5 billion for support of the horse racing industry over the initial 30 years.

–Janell Hazelwood