Prince George's County approves $215M in bonds to bring Sphere venue to National Harbor

Prince George's County took its most consequential economic development vote in years on Tuesday, with the County Council unanimously approving up to $215 million in special obligation bonds to help build a Sphere entertainment venue at National Harbor — a deal that came within a thread of unraveling over demands for union labor protections.

The final vote was 8-0, with three members — Vice Chair Eric Olson, Tom Dernoga and Wanika Fisher — absent. The tally was anticlimactic compared to the weeks of tense negotiation that preceded it, according to WTOP, with the real drama playing out behind the scenes as county officials, state leaders and Sphere executives haggled over conditions that could have killed the project entirely.

Today, Prince George's County enters the global stage and redefines itself as a destination for investment, entertainment, technology and innovation.— Aisha Braveboy, Prince George's County Executive

The approved financing package includes $130 million in county bond financing to be repaid through tax revenues generated by the facility, a $40 million county-built parking garage, and more than $13 million from the state of Maryland, according to WTOP. Sphere Entertainment Co. would gradually repay the bonds to the county. The overall project cost is approximately $1.4 billion.

The venue — a smaller, 6,000-seat version of the company's flagship Las Vegas arena — is projected to produce a $1.3 billion economic impact for Prince George's County and $1.5 billion for the state, with $63 million in annual property, sales and amusement tax revenue alone, Braveboy said. She framed that figure as more than triple what the county is losing from the closure of Six Flags and the Washington Commanders' planned return to Washington, D.C.

The decision to go after Sphere — to work to bring it to Prince George's County — will more than triple in tax revenue what we are losing with the Commanders leaving in a few years and the closure of Six Flags.— Aisha Braveboy, Prince George's County Executive

The path to Tuesday's vote was anything but smooth. For weeks, a majority of the council was determined to require a Project Labor Agreement — a PLA — as a condition of the public financing, which would have mandated union labor during construction. Sphere executives identified a PLA as a red line they would not cross, according to WTOP, and the standoff threatened to end the project entirely.

Gov. Wes Moore, his labor relations director Dyana Forester, his administration's lead on the Sphere project Manny Welsh, and House Speaker Joseline Peña-Melnyk took an active role in breaking the deadlock, according to The Banner, which cited multiple people familiar with the negotiations who spoke on condition of anonymity. They called and met with council members to stress the project's importance and push toward a deal.

The Governor and his team engaged in productive conversations with council members and stakeholders to ensure that this transformational project can continue.— Ammar Moussa, spokesperson for Gov. Wes Moore

The compromise that emerged fell short of a full PLA. Instead, the county secured a labor peace agreement — allowing union groups to organize workers at the Sphere once it opens, but without construction-worker protections — along with a community benefits fund and separate agreements to benefit minority-owned and small businesses, according to WTOP and NBC Washington.

It was actually a major compromise, I feel, because it was so far from project labor agreement. Essentially, we trying to split the baby — provide some guarantee for labor while not forcing the project labor agreement.— Ed Burroughs, Prince George's County Council member

For council member Wala Blegay, a former labor attorney who spent years in the labor movement, the vote was personal. She voted against an amendment that would have added labor requirements to the bill, saying the project's loss would have been worse.

We cannot afford to have Sphere walk away.— Wala Blegay, Prince George's County Council member

The deal also carries significant political weight for Braveboy, who has been in office since winning a special election in June 2025 after Angela Alsobrooks left for the U.S. Senate, according to The Banner. Former county executive Rushern Baker, who led negotiations to secure the MGM National Harbor casino, said any failure would have made it harder to attract future large-scale projects — including development of the Six Flags America site in Bowie and Northwest Stadium in Landover after the Commanders' expected departure.

Your administration will rise or fall on getting that first significant deal done.— Rushern Baker, former Prince George's County Executive

This creates an open lane to show that Prince George's County can handle a project of this scale. And we want projects of this scale.— Alexander Austin, President and CEO of the Prince George's Chamber of Commerce

Council Chair Krystal Oriadha said the Sphere approval pushes the county beyond its long-standing identity as a bedroom community, while Braveboy pointed to the county's over-reliance on residential property taxes as a structural problem the Sphere is meant to help correct.

Far too long, we have focused our attention on our residential tax base, which has put a burden on our property owners, and the only way to begin to move away from that is to have a strong commercial tax base.— Aisha Braveboy, Prince George's County Executive

A groundbreaking ceremony has not yet been scheduled, though a county spokesman said he hoped it would happen soon, according to WTOP. When the deal was first announced, the target opening was early 2030.

Why it matters — The vote commits Prince George's County to its largest entertainment investment in years, setting a template for how the county finances and negotiates major commercial development as it tries to diversify beyond residential property taxes.

Reported by washingtonpost.com, nbcwashington.com, marylandmatters.org, axios.com, wtop.com, thebanner.com, casino.com