The Nambé Pueblo of New Mexico last weekend joined the state’s 15 other gaming tribes and opened a slots only casino on the pueblo, about 15 miles from Santa Fe. The casino is billed as a convenient roadside facility that is “A New Way to Play.”
A grand opening is planned for February 6.
The pueblo has worked on opening a casino in this crowded gaming market for nearly two decades off and on, and the one that opened was smaller than the 500-machine facility and Star Trek theme park originally envisioned after the tribe signed a gaming compact with the state in 2007. The tribe joined the other gaming tribes last year in signing a new gaming compact that expires in 22 years.
The new casino has 180 machines on 7,310 square feet on what the casino calls “one of the most elegant gaming floors in the region” and a “boutique space.” It is aimed to please customers who seek service that is “comfortable, convenient and personalized” in a less grand setting with convenient parking. It is located adjacent to the Nambé Falls Travel Center just off U.S. 84-28 on land that the tribe obtained in a trade from the Pojoaque Pueblo.
The casino is managed by Pamela Gallegos, who formerly managed the Hard Rock Casino-Hotel Albuquerque.
The casino is trying to set itself apart from the five other tribal casinos in the area that includes the Pojoaque Pueblo’s Buffalo Thunder Resort & Casino a mile away.
