Operator News
US – Kalispel Tribe confirms expansion at Northern Quest Casino in Washington
By Phil - 24 November 2020
The Kalispel Tribe has announced it will begin an expansion project at its Northern Quest Resort & Casino in Washington in March, adding a new hotel wing with 200 rooms and creating more than 150 jobs.
Nick Pierre, Northern Quest General Manager, said: “While 2020 has been a difficult year for the hospitality industry, we continue to weather the storm and look toward to the future. For the past several years, we’ve been running at consistently high occupancy in our hotel. And while meetings and events business has taken a big hit in the past eight months, we are confident things will bounce back in the coming months and years, returning us to the kind of demand we were seeing in 2019 and early 2020. Back in March, the COVID-19 global pandemic forced us to delay our announcement of this project, but as we close out 2020, we are excited to move forward with an eye on maintaining our excellent reputation as an entertainment destination in Eastern Washington.”
The new hotel will be located west, but adjacent to the current hotel tower. It will add more than 190 additional rooms and suites, bringing overall hotel capacity to more than 440 rooms. The new structure will include five connected buildings inspired by the concept of a Native American fish weir. Weirs were often constructed by groups of Tribal Members and used as a community-focused fishing technique where Native peoples could gather to fish, trade and celebrate. The new hotel rooms will be similar in style to the current Northern Quest hotel rooms, with generous spaces, large windows, comfortable beds and the much talked-about luxurious four-jet spa showers. A skywalk will connect the current hotel on the northwest side to the new addition.
The Kalispel Tribe plans to break ground on the new project in March 2021, with completion scheduled for early 2023. In addition to the hundreds of temporary construction jobs this project will bring to the Spokane area, the expansion project will bring approximately 150 permanent new jobs to the Airway Heights property. The Tribe’s master plan includes the potential addition of a more than 30,000 square- foot conference center, depending on the demand for groups and meetings business in the coming months and years.
“Since the Kalispel Tribe opened Northern Quest in 2000, we have had a history of making calculated investment decisions when others are putting projects on hold,” says Kalispel Tribal Economic Authority Chief Operating Officer Phil Haugen. “We broke ground on the original Northern Quest hotel in 2008, during the largest recession this country has seen in recent years. We are proud to say that project proved to be a huge success for the Tribe. The hotel became the foundation for continued resort expansion, creating world class entertainment options for the Spokane region. We’re excited about the possibilities this project will bring in 2023 and beyond.”
The Kalispel Tribe has hired the design-build team of Lydig Construction of Spokane, Integrus Architecture of Spokane and Ankrom Moisan of Seattle. Other design-build partners include Coffman Engineers, Parametrix, MW Engineers, and The Society (hospitality interior design).
“We’re excited about our local partners for this project and look forward to bringing the new hotel to fruition,” said Mr. Pierre. “Every project we’re adding at the Northern Quest property brings us one step closer to realising our vision of becoming the ultimate destination resort.”
