National Harbor Sphere Labor Dispute Emerges as County Weighs $130M Funding Bill

A dispute over union labor has emerged as a potential obstacle for Sphere Entertainment’s planned $1.4 billion venue at National Harbor, as Prince George’s County officials consider a $130 million tax-increment financing package that would help support construction of the project.

County Council members pressed Sphere representatives this week over whether the company will enter into a project labor agreement for construction of the 6,000-seat venue, while labor unions turned out in force at a subsequent public listening session to argue that worker protections should accompany the public financing.

The disagreement comes as the council weighs CB-111-2026, legislation authorizing as much as $215 million in special obligation bonds connected to National Harbor. That figure is broader than the amount going toward the Sphere itself: county budget documents identify approximately $130 million in county tax-increment financing for the venue, while the legislation also provides authority to refinance existing National Harbor bonds and cover reserves, capitalized interest and issuance costs.

The county’s broader incentive package also includes approximately $40 million in publicly financed bonds for a county-owned parking garage and $13.5 million in state funding, according to Prince George’s County budget documents.

Sphere Rejects Project Labor Agreement

The labor disagreement came into sharper focus Monday during a meeting of the council’s Planning, Housing and Economic Development Committee.

Richard Constable, an executive representing Sphere, told council members that the company has extensive relationships with organized labor at its existing properties but would not agree to the specific project labor agreement some council members are seeking.

“I was clear with you, and everyone else, that we’re not doing a [project labor agreement],” Constable told Council Chair Krystal Oriadha, according to The Baltimore Banner.

Oriadha responded that “there will [be] inclusion of labor. Period,” as council members pushed Sphere to reach some form of written agreement with labor representatives before the financing moves forward.

Constable said Sphere does not intend to require subcontractors to change their labor practices in order to maintain a fully unionized construction workforce. Instead, the company expects individual contractors to determine their workforce arrangements.

At the same time, Sphere has pointed to substantial union employment elsewhere in its operations. Constable said more than 97% of tradespeople who worked on construction of the Las Vegas Sphere were union workers, while approximately 45% of Sphere Las Vegas’ current full- and part-time employees are represented by unions. He also said the company expects a significant union presence on the National Harbor project.

The Prince George’s County administration has also raised concerns about making a project labor agreement mandatory. Deputy Chief Administrative Officer Tracy Benjamin told council members that requiring the entire project to use union labor could reduce opportunities for county-based firms, including businesses participating in the county’s minority business enterprise program that are not unionized.

Unions Press Their Case at Public Session

The debate continued Tuesday during a council listening session that drew a large crowd, including significant representation from construction unions.

The Washington Sun reported that union members called for a project labor agreement that would establish employment conditions for construction of the Sphere and ensure workers have a role in determining those terms. Lamar Mutts of the Eastern Atlantic States Regional Council of Carpenters questioned whether local labor currently has a meaningful role in negotiations, noting that Sphere has emphasized its union relationships in Las Vegas and New York while declining to commit to an agreement in Prince George’s County.

The Baltimore-DC Metro Building Trades Council, meanwhile, has publicly urged council members to make a project labor agreement a condition of approving the financing package. Union representatives have also pushed for prevailing-wage requirements, registered apprenticeship programs and local-hiring commitments.

The labor question adds another variable to a public financing process that was already drawing scrutiny over how much of the venue’s projected economic impact will ultimately translate into new county revenue.

Prince George’s County says the TIF would be repaid with future tax revenue generated within the development district rather than through a new tax. The county has promoted an Ernst & Young analysis estimating that Sphere operations and visitor spending could produce more than $1.3 billion in annual economic activity in Prince George’s County once the venue is operating.

The EY analysis projects approximately $63 million per year in taxes across Prince George’s County government and other local taxing districts, along with another $64.3 million annually for Maryland. Those estimates are projections based in part on data supplied by Sphere and assume a stabilized third year of operations.

Council staff have raised additional questions about the longer-term cost of the financing. During Tuesday’s listening session, legislative staff said the proposed $130 million TIF borrowing could amount to roughly $400 million in principal and debt service through 2056, while noting that other public costs associated with the development could also affect the project’s eventual fiscal impact.

National Harbor Sphere Advances Toward 2030 Target

The latest debate marks another stage in a project TicketNews has followed since Sphere Entertainment, Maryland and Prince George’s County announced the proposed National Harbor venue in January.

Unlike the approximately 18,000-seat Las Vegas Sphere, the Maryland venue is being designed for roughly 6,000 attendees. Plans call for an exterior Exosphere LED display, a 16K-by-16K interior display, immersive audio, haptic seating and environmental effects.

Preliminary site plans released over the summer placed the building on roughly 14 acres near MGM National Harbor and showed a structure approximately 302 feet tall.

Sphere is targeting a 2030 opening. The company has said construction would generate thousands of jobs, while the county-backed EY analysis estimates approximately 7,100 full- and part-time jobs could eventually be supported directly and indirectly by Sphere operations and associated visitor spending in Prince George’s County.

Before reaching that point, however, the project still needs to clear the county financing process. As of Sept. 25, CB-111-2026 remains listed by the Prince George’s County Council as “To Committee.” The Washington Sun reported that additional committee consideration and a public hearing are expected before a vote.

The question facing council members is therefore no longer simply whether to provide public financing for the Sphere, but what labor, hiring and other conditions — if any — will accompany that support.