PORT ANGELES — The Lower Elwha Klallam tribe will have to wait a little longer to power up its first casino.
The 7,000-square-foot building on Stratton Road south of the tribal center is now expected to open in early February, said Frances Charles, tribal chairwoman, on Tuesday.
The $4 million casino, which has been roofed and painted, will have 100 bingo-style electronic slots that accept pennies on up. A deli will be included, but no alcohol will be served.
The casino’s initial opening date was the end of December. That date had been pushed back to mid or late January to give the Clallam County Public Utility District time to contract work to upgrade the electrical line.
The upgrade is needed because the line is near capacity, said John Purvis, PUD distribution systems manager.
Contract delayed
Awarding that contract, which went out to bid initially over a week ago, has been delayed to allow the PUD to clarify parts of it for inquiring bidders, Purvis said.
Some of the items in the contract weren’t specific enough when outlining the utility district’s requirements, he added.
“We need to ensure the contract is consistent with our standards,” he said.
Purvis said that bidding for the contract, estimated at nearly $100,000, is set to reopen on Jan. 9.
The cost of the work will be covered by the tribe as initially intended, Purvis said, which is typical when a customer requires an electrical line to hold additional capacity.
Purvis said the work, which includes upgrading a conductor, is expected to be completed by Feb. 6.
The PUD told the tribe at the end of November that it would need to contract that work, which extended the casino’s opening into January, he said.
Purvis said that the PUD realized that it would not have enough resources available to conduct the work while at the same time addressing power outages caused by winter storms.
The PUD wouldn’t have been able to complete the work on its own until about March, he said.
Profits for tribal needs
Charles has said that the casino’s profits have been earmarked for tribal needs such as housing, health care and social services.
The building is designed to house tribal offices if the casino is unsuccessful or is moved to another location.
Charles said the casino is expected to attract slot players from Neah Bay to McDonald Creek near Carlsborg.
The tribe was the first to sign a gaming pact with the state in 1989. It previously operated bingo games in the tribal center.
As a Class 3 casino, the tribe will be overseen by the federal government through the National Indian Gaming Commission.
With the opening of its own casino, the Lower Elwha Klallam tribe would be following in the footsteps of the Jamestown S’Klallam tribe which operates the much larger 7 Cedars Casino in Blyn.
As a Class 2 operation, the Jamestown S’Klallam’s casino is supervised by the state.
________
Reporter Tom Callis can be reached at 360-417-3532 or at tom.callis@peninsuladailynews.com.
