Pechanga Band of Luiseno Indians in California’s Riverside County last week unveiled a renovated lobby to the public with the hope that the most common reaction would be “wow!”
The construction work took 81 days to complete.
The words Tribal Chairman Mark Macarro used to describe 25,000 square foot renovation, which was done for an undisclosed amount described as “millions,” included “fantastic,” “elegant” and timeless,” and the hope is that a large segment of the public, a younger segment, will think so too.
The proof of that may be that hundreds of people have taken photos of some of the new features since the renovations were opened to the public.
The tribe did release a study that estimated that the work that was done on the project boosted the local economy by about $20 million by, among other things employing 350 construction workers for nearly three months and creating 90 permanent jobs.
The new features include a ceiling rain curtain water feature, a new oyster bar, a wine bar/coffee shop has replaced a gift shop, although a smaller gift shop has been located elsewhere. In addition the Pechanga Café and Blazing Noodles restaurants have both been upgraded.
According to Ken Westmyer, chairman of the Temecula Valley Convention and Visitors Bureau, quoted by the IE Grapevine, “When a company as committed as Pechanga to giving visitors an experience they remember and come back for time and time again does something on as grand a scale as a multi-million dollar remodel, it has a nearly immediate effect on many other visitor-based businesses – wineries, hotels, restaurants, shops and more.”
The next renovation project will be to give a facelift to the Eagle’s Nest Restaurant said Ciara Green, the resort’s spokesman.
