Mashantucket Tribe reflects on 25 years since bingo hall opened

Friday, July 8, 2011  

It's been 25 years since the Mashantucket Pequot Tribal Nation of Connecticut got into the Indian gaming industry.

The tribe opened the Mashantucket Pequot Indian High Stakes Bingo, a 35,000-square-foot facility with 50 employees, in July 1986. The tribe is now the proud owner of Foxwoods Resort Casino and MGM Grand at Foxwoods, the largest Indian gaming facility in the U.S. and one of the largest casinos in the world.

The journey hasn't always been an easy one. There have been numerous challenges to the tribe's sovereignty and even its legitimacy.

And the tribe is still weathering the recession that hit the nation in 2008. The casino employs 8,941 people, down from more than 13,000, and revenues have taken a hit.

"Since the recession … we've had to rethink and refocus on the bottom line. When you've had so much success over the years, that's not easy to do," Chairman Rodney Butler told The Hartford Courant. "Success breeds complacency and that's where we were to some degree. If you want to survive long-term you can't be complacent."

Get the Story:
Foxwoods: 25 Years Of Ups And Downs Since Bingo Hall First Opened (The Hartford Courant 7/8)

Related Stories:
Mashantucket Tribe celebrates 25 years of bingo with big jackpot (7/5)