As the Jena Choctaw Pines Casino in Grant Parish, Louisiana recently celebrated its fourth anniversary, Jena Choctaw Band Tribal Chief Cheryl Smith announced construction would begin on an 80-room hotel next door. “We have over 200 acres here and these are just the first tiny steps that we’re taking. Gaming is the venue now so you need to add extra amenities,” Smith said. The hotel will be completed by the end of 2018.
She added education and housing already have benefited from the Class II casino profits, and that the 46,000 square foot casino also has provided an economic boost to Grant Parish and Central Louisiana as a whole.
Earlier, Smith had said, “We’re growing but we’re growing small and wisely. There’s such a thing as getting too big. We never want to over-extend and burden the tribe with debt we can’t pay back. My mentors informed me that the hey-day of gaming is over. We know that gaming is down all over the country. We’re doing well with what we’re doing right now. We want to grow but we want to do it is a smart way.”
One of two tribal casinos in central Louisiana, the Jena Choctaw Pines Casino offers 700 slots, a poker room, sports bar and buffet. The Tunica-Biloxi Tribe of Louisiana operates the Paragon Casino Resort in nearby Marksville.
