The San Carlos Apache Nation of southeastern Arizona broke ground last week on the 15,000 square foot Apache Sky casino in Pinal County, near Dudleyville.
The initial construction will be of a temporary casino on 170 acres. Eventually there will be a gaming complex and resort that will look very much like the Apache Gold Casino Resort that the tribe operates near Globe. It will employ more than 300 workers when it opens.
Tribal officials say there is no date set for completion.
Pinal County Economic Development Manager Tim Kanavel predicts that the casino will give a shot in the arm of the county’s tourism, which has stagnated in recent years. The region, which has scenic attractions, doesn’t have many places for tourists to stay, so visitors come and leave on the same day. The casino resort could change that, he said.
Other county officials believe the casino could rejuvenate the region’s economy, which has suffered from a declining mining industry, that hasn’t yet been replaced by another industry. Small towns such as Mammoth and Kearny could benefit from the job creation, they say.
The site chosen for the casino resort is controversial among some tribal members. Recently Dale Miles, a former tribal historian, wrote an op-ed in a local paper that criticized any development for being so close to where a massacre of
over 100 Aravaipa Apache members occurred in 1871.
Tribal Chairman Lee Randall disputes this contention, telling the Casa Grande Dispatch that the casino site underwent a study several years ago that determined that it had not “cultural significance” or “historical viability.”
