The Eastern Shawnee Tribe of Oklahoma on June 23 broke ground on its million expansion of the Indigo Sky Casino near Seneca in Ottawa County.
The expansion will add 128 hotel rooms, a ballroom and events center, which will hold up to 600 and can be divided into five separate meetings and events spaces, or used as a single room.
The casino’s current events space holds up to 300 and can be divided into four separate rooms, giving the casino up to nine rooms for meetings and events.
The Shawanoe Restaurant also will grow with seating for100 upon completion, and all kitchens are slated for improvements.
The tribe says its daily buffets are very popular among guests, and the restaurant expansion will help to keep it that way.
The Indigo Sky Casino currently has 1,275 slots in its 45,000-square-foot gaming space, a poker room, off-track betting, bingo, a 117-room hotel, a pool, three restaurants, a banquet area, and two bars.
The Eastern Shawnee Tribe opened the Indigo Sky in 2012, and has been involved in gaming for 32 years.
The tribe opened and began operating the Bordertown Casino and Arena, in 2003, and added the Outpost Casino in 2008.
Its three casinos employ 650, while another 45 are expected upon completion of the $34 million expansion of the Indigo Sky Casino.
The tribe intends to distribute half of all casino profits with the tribe’s 3,300 members located across the nation. Less than a third of the tribe’s membership resides within Oklahoma.
The casino also funds the tribe’s support programs for its elders and its scholarship program for young members. The tribe says more than 10 percent of its members are enrolled in college.
