Nearly two years after talk of the project first surfaced, news of the Yavapai-Prescott Indian Tribe’s new casino and resort in the Prescott, Arizona area has reemerged.
Currently, soil sampling is being conducted at the 12-acre site to ensure it is suitable for construction, said the Yavapai Gaming Agency on Friday. Stephen Whisenhunt, marketing director for the agency, told the Prescott Daily Courier, “Until soil sampling is complete and a ground breaking is set, nobody can predict completion.”
The location for the constructions of tribe’s new casino resort would be at the northeast corner of Highway 69 and the Yavpe Connector. Prescott is the county seat of Yavapai County, and approximately 100 miles north of Phoenix. The approximate 1,400 acres of Yavapai-Prescott Indian Reservation sits next to Prescott.
Once the geotechnical analyses have been completed and the land deemed suitable for construction, the tribe will move forward with the next phase in the process, which will be selecting a firm to design and build the property.?Previously the tribe was working with architectural and engineering firm Leo A. Daly Inc. That relationship, however, fell through causing the tribe to delay its plans, according to Whisenhunt.
Yet to be named, the tribe anticipates the new casino and resort will be a 50,000-square-foot facility.
Originally a fall 2015 groundbreaking was scheduled and completion was estimated to be?by the end of 2016. Whisenhunt said?that?at this point no new dates can be determined.
According to the tribe’s news release, included in its plans for the new property is an 80-room destination resort as well as event space for conferences, meeting, receptions and banquets. The state-of-the-art casino will feature a mix of old and new games and have dining options offering a variety of cuisines.
Ernest Jones Sr., president of the Yavapai-Prescott Indian Tribe, said that “the economic impact of the project to the Prescott region is estimated to be $80 million over the course of the project.”
Two casinos next to Prescott are already operated by the tribe, including Bucky’s at its Prescott Resort and Conference Center (pictured) and Yavapai Casino, on the south side of Highway 69. Together the two casinos employ more than 300?people.
Under the tribe’s gaming compact, the Yavapai-Prescott tribe has the right to 90 card tables and 566 slot machines.