Twenty-four years after opening its first casino in a tent structure, Soboba Casino in San Jacinto, Southern California was scheduled to open this week with a resort property, including a luxury resort hotel that wouldn’t look ashamed in Las Vegas all within a 474,000 square foot resort.
It is the first Indian casino in the area since 2008 to add a hotel. Marketing Director Gene Stachowski, interviewed by the Press-Enterprise said, “It’s a full-blown destination resort now, no longer just Soboba Casino.”
The new casino resort has been moved away from the original location. The only thing they have in common is that the casino has the same large sign surrounded by light bulbs that originally welcomed patrons twenty-four years ago.
We felt we needed to keep a piece of our past to display and show visitors where we come from,” commented Tribal Council Vice Chairman Isaiah Vivanco.
It officially opened the casino February 20 and the hotel two days later. The hotel, which overlooks the golf course, has 200 rooms, many of them luxury, several restaurants, a pool, conference center and entertainment. The casino has 2,000 slots and 32 table games, the same numbers as before. The point of the expansion is not more gaming, but more luxury and destination appointments.
But the new casino has a large enough floor that it can accommodate more gaming once the tribe decides the time is right.
Soboba Tribal Council Vice Chairman Isaiah Vivanco told the Press-Enterprise: “The beauty of this is, is that it allows us to do so much more. We’re not confined to one space for one group.”
Dining options include a 24-hour café that overlooks the Soboba Springs Golf Course; the Noodle Bar, a sit-down restaurant specializing in Asian cuisine; Canyons, the resort’s upscale fine dining establishment; Restaurant row, which is a type of food court offering fried chicken, pizza, a brew pub and Mexican cuisine. There is also a coffee kiosk and the “Tree Bar” situated in the geographic center and calling attention to itself with a large illuminated tree set off by strings of glass beads that change colors depending on the occasion. There is also the Sports Cabaret and Poolside Bar & Grill.
Most great casino resorts have pool extravaganzas, and Soboba has joined them with an 8,000 square foot pool where patrons can rest in the shade of palms and enjoy parties and concerts on large grassy areas.
The 15,000 SF conference center can be configured in a variety of sizes, from two large ones to four smaller ones.
Local officials say the hotel resort will be the largest tourist magnet in the San Jacinto Valley and set the pace for other economic development. It will also be one of the largest employers in the area, creating 654 new jobs.
