The Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians broke the ground for their gaming and travel plaza project on Wednesday. The Choctaw Resort Development Enterprise, Inc. (CRDE) will build the facility. Yet, it is the Native tribe's hospitality and gaming subsidiary.
The tribe's members attended the groundbreaking ceremony of the $25 million property in Louisville. They will launch the casino in the summer of 2024, this being the tribe's fourth gaming site in Mississippi.
Tribal officials witnessed the excavation of the construction site on which they will build the "Louisville Travel Plaza." It will cover 18,000 square feet and feature a family-friendly restaurant, gas station, diesel truck stop, and a boutique casino.
The casino will offer sports gambling and have 150 slot machines. Cyrus Ben, Choctaw Tribal Chief, revealed that they discussed the project for a long period before starting it this week.
It is CRDE's new gaming project, and it proves the growth of the tribe's businesses. The Indian Native tribe owns and runs three other gaming properties in the state.
Golden Moon and the Silver Star are located at the Pearl River Resort complex. Still, the Choctaws also own the Bok Homa Casino in Heidelberg.
The New Casino's Naming
Louisville is a small town in Winston County, Mississippi, with 7,000 residents. Thus, Choctaw's new casino will be the smallest in its gaming portfolio.
Silver Star has a 90,000-square-foot gaming space with a bookmaker, 40 table games, and 1,200 slot machines. Golden Moon has 70,000 square feet of gaming space, a 14-table poker room, 25 table games, and 1,150 slots.
The Pearl River Resort has an 18-hole championship golf course which it named the Dancing Rabbit Golf Club, a spa, convention space, over 1,100 on-property hotel rooms, and many bars and restaurants. Bok Homa has 27,000 square feet of gaming space, a bookie, ten electronic table games, and 700 slot machines, and it is 100 miles south of the Pearl River Resort.
"Louisville Travel Plaza" is the Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians' working concept since it is engaging members to choose its permanent name. Ben stated that they will decide on the property's name before launching it next year, and it will hire about 100 workers.
The tribal chief added that he is excited about offering Crystal Ridge and the Louisville community an opportunity to access and play thrilling online games. The Choctaws have an amazing working relationship with local communities, and they intend to improve their lives.
The Choctaw Indians' Gaming Expansion
The Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians has owned the 18 acres of land, and it has been in the federal trust for over five decades. It intends to build a truck stop and gaming site on it. The United States Department of the Interior has to take tribal land into trust for a tribe to conduct tribal gaming operations on it.
Ben disclosed that the tribe has taken good care of its land since the 1960s and intends to develop it now. It is 25 miles from Starkville, a city with 25,000 residents and home to Mississippi State University.
