Cherokee casino hopes to expand
Monday, February 27th, 2006
By Chris Fitzsimon
By BARRY SMITH
STAFF WRITER
Freedom Raleigh Bureau
RALEIGH — Nestled along the Great Smokey Mountains sits Harrah’s Cherokee Casino. First opened in 1997, the 175,000-square-foot casino is a top tourist attraction which employs about 1,800 people.
A published report in the nearby Sylva Herald says the Jackson County casino has a payroll of about $48.3 million.
Even with all the economic success of the casino, the Eastern Band of the Cherokee Indians doesn’t believe it has reached its potential. The Cherokees would like to expand the casino to having live games, a move that could bring in more tourists and provide more jobs in the Western North Carolina community.
Under a pact between the Eastern Band and former North Carolina Gov. Jim Hunt, the Cherokees were allowed to open up a casino. However, gambling was limited to machine or video games. No live games, such as people dealing blackjack cards, were allowed. (more…)
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