The Sphere in Las Vegas may have a Maryland relative by 2030 if the Prince George’s County Council approves a $1.4 billion proposal to build the entertainment venue, but local workers want to secure a labor agreement first.
During a public meeting in Largo on Tuesday, council members fielded residents’ concerns over Sphere Entertainment’s plans to construct the 6,000-seat venue, which would have about a third of the capacity of the Las Vegas space, on a 15-acre lot just north of MGM National Harbor.
At the start of the meeting, Paul Macchia, senior vice president of government affairs and social impact for Sphere Entertainment, said the Sphere would generate an estimated $1.3 billion in economic activity to the county and $1.5 billion across the state, based on projections from the Las Vegas Sphere’s performance.
“We think National Harbor is the perfect location for a world-class venue like Sphere,” Macchia said. “In every community where we operate, we strive to be good neighbors.”
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The packed crowd was mostly composed of union members who called for a project labor agreement and want a say in employment terms to ensure a fair deal for workers.
Sphere Entertainment’s presentation expressed a “commitment to organized labor” and stated the project would generate more than 12,000 new jobs for construction and supporting businesses and services, with 3,300 of those construction jobs in Prince George’s County.
The presentation also stated that more than 97% of the tradespeople employed during construction of the Las Vegas Sphere were union workers, and 45% of its current staff are union-represented.
“All the companies in the Madison Square Garden family of companies, including Sphere Entertainment, are exceptionally union-friendly,” Macchia said. “We have excellent relations with labor unions in Vegas, New York and Chicago, and we fully expect those relations to continue here in Prince George’s County.”
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Lamar Mutts of the Eastern Atlantic States Regional Council of Carpenters, who asked his fellow union members to stand before his public comment, said he wasn’t sure local workers have a “seat at the table” regarding a labor agreement.
“Sphere has talked about its strong relationship with unions on its Vegas and New York projects, but when asked about a project labor agreement here in Prince George’s County, we’re told ‘There’s nothing to talk about at this time,’” Mutts said. “That concerns me.”
Prince George’s County Council Chair Krystal Oriadha told WTOP that any public financing must guarantee protected jobs and minority business hiring and that the county is exploring whether the project could help fund a rail connection.
Oriadha and other council members have pressed the Sphere to adopt a project labor agreement, according to The Baltimore Banner. In a meeting of the council’s planning, housing and development committee the day before the listening session, Oriadha told a Sphere executive, “There will [be] inclusion of labor. Period,” the Banner reported.
The proposal still faces committee reviews and a public hearing ahead of an October vote, she said.
If approved, site work for the project would begin in early 2027, according to Sphere Entertainment’s presentation.
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