Wind Creek Bethlehem, which was formerly branded as Sands Bethlehem, celebrated its grand opening on Thursday. The property is now owned by the PCI Gaming Authority of Alabama’s Poarch of Creek Indians, which are partnered with Wind Creek Hospitality. This is their 10th casino in total, meaning that they had a special reason to celebrate the opening of the venue.
Wind Creek Hospitality obtained the complex, which includes a hotel, casino, and a couple of other amenities this spring. The deal with Las Vegas Sands was announced back in 2018, as the two sides agreed on a price of $1.3 billion.
The grand opening ceremony was something that all visitors are going to remember for a long time. It included various interesting activities, such as great tribal dancers and even tribal princesses. By introducing this new vibe to the facility, the tribe marked a new era of development.
The history of this property is not a long one, as it first opened its doors back in 2009. Before it became a casino, the site was actually a steel plant called Bethlehem Steel. However, the plant shut down, and Las Vegas Sands decided to jump in and give the place a fresh look, turning it into an entertainment venue that also included a casino.
The building process cost approximately $800 million, and it soon became one of the top-performing casinos in the entire state of Pennsylvania.
At the moment, all visitors who decide to go to the complex and visit its casino will have an opportunity to play various popular casino games. The gaming floor is set in an area that is 183,300 square feet wide, and it features as many as 3,000 slot machines.
On top of that, lovers of table games will be able to take part in these at one of the 200 tables offered in the casino. Needless to say, casino lovers can get hungry from time to time, and the facility offers a wide variety of food and drink venues, as well as a 150,000 square foot shopping mall. Finally, there’s a great event center for various purposes.
Still Work To Do
According to the officials who run the property, they are actively discussing with regulators several upgrades, with the most important ones being online gambling and sports betting as additions to the existing offer.
Pennsylvania’s officials and gaming regulators have been working hard on extending the list of available gambling options in this state, meaning that WInd Creek could be getting what it wants.
The grand opening ceremony also hosted some of the state’s officials and casino patrons. There was even the traditional ribbon-cutting ceremony, which marked a new era for this hotel and casino facility in Bethlehem, Pa.
Wind Creek Hospitality had to invest approximately $15 million in order to completely rebrand the property. However, they don’t plan to stop there, as officials have huge plans for the future, which involve adding many more interesting options for visitors.
Jay Dorris, President and CEO of Wind Creek, stated on Thursday that he and his team were working hard to preserve the original spirit of the property that played a very important role for the community of Bethlehem. He added that they had introduced the Wind Creek Rewards program, which is available at all properties that are part of the Wind Creek brand.
Officials of Wind Creek also stated that they plan to invest an additional $90 million in order to build 276 more hotel rooms and to improve the event space with an additional 42,000 square feet. There’s certainly a bright future for this property!
