The Spokane Tribe of Indians last week revealed details on the off-reservation 0 million casino it hopes to break ground on this fall. The tribe plans to build in Airway Heights, Washington on 145 acres.
The tribe will build in several phases over a ten-year period, according to the Spokesman-Review. Phase 1 of the Spokane Tribe Economic Project (STEP) will include the casino, dining and outdoor facilities. Tribal Chairwoman Carol Evans told the San Francisco Chronicle that Phase 1 could be open by next year with 450 slots, 12 gaming tables and two restaurants.
An entertainment and retail development could follow ten years later.
The tribe wanted to build a casino for a decade but controversy prevented them from going forward. Eventually it submitted an application for an off-reservation casino to the Bureau of Indian Affairs, which approved of the casino in 2015. In June the tribe signed a tribal gaming compact with Washington Governor Jay Robert Inslee, who agreement was required for an off-reservation casino.
Despite those developments, the project remains controversial to many local officials and gaming tribes with competing casinos. One major objection to the casino is that it is near the Fairchild Air Force Base, which is a generator of considerable economic activity. The critics feel the casino could threaten the base.
It will, however, also generate an estimated $5 million in tax revenue for the state and local government and the host community.
