Openings & Closings

Quapaw Tribe not worried about another Cherokee Nation casino

Wednesday, April 13, 2016

The Quapaw Tribe owns and operates the Downstream Casino Resort in the states of Oklahoma, Kansas and Missouri. Photo from Facebook

The Cherokee Nation continues to expand its gaming empire in Oklahoma but a fellow tribe isn't worried about the competition.

The Quapaw Tribe operates the Downstream Casino Resort about 38 miles from Grove, where the Cherokee Nation broke ground on its 10th gaming facility. Downstream will still be much larger than the Cherokee Casino Grove and it is uniquely positioned to attract patrons from Oklahoma, Kansas and Missouri.

"We don't anticipate it affecting us much, if at all," Downstream spokesperson Sean Harrison told The Joplin Globe.

The developers of the Kansas Crossing Casino, a commercial facility in Pittsburg, Kansas, aren't worried either. The $70.2 million development is scheduled to open shortly after the Cherokee Nation finishes work in Grove in the winter of 2017.

Artist's rendering of the Cherokee Casino Grove in Oklahoma. Image from Anadisgoi / Cherokee Nation

"We would expect little to no competition to our business model from another casino in Grove," investor Jonathan Swain told the Globe. Pittsburg is about 60 miles from Grove.

The Cherokee Casino Grove will be a lot closer to the Grand Lake Casino and the Grand Lake Casino Lodge, both owned by the Seneca-Cayuga Tribe. The Globe did not say whether it asked the Seneca-Cayugas about the competition.

The 39,000 square-foot Cherokee Casino Grove will feature 400 electronic games, table games, a private high limit poker room, a restaurant, a full-service bar, a live music venue, a dance floor, an event space and an outdoor patio.

Get the Story:
Cherokee Nation to build $23 million casino in Grove (The Joplin Globe 4/13)