The Pokagon Band of Potawatomi Indians is betting the Dowagiac area is a good place for the latest of its Four Winds Casinos.
The tribe has received the necessary approvals from Pokagon Township, near Dowagiac, to proceed with construction, which is expected to begin this summer.
Four Winds Dowagiac will be designed in the same style as Four Winds New Buffalo and Four Winds Hartford. The new casino will have 3,000 square feet of multi-use space, 200 slot machines and four table games. Its restaurant will seat 25.
Chairman of the Pokagon Band of Potawatomi Matt Wesaw says 100 new jobs will be created and a large number of people will be working during construction. A significant number of the tribe's population lives in Pokagon Township and the casino can provide jobs for them, one reason the area was chosen as the site for the new casino.
Wesaw also says the tribe's market studies showed the area would support the small casino, which is likely to be more like a restaurant with a bar than a larger casino when it comes to the amount of traffic it will generate.
The Pokagon Band provides services including housing, education, family services, medical care and cultural preservation to approximately 4,500 citizens of the tribe in its 10 county service area includes four counties in Southwestern Michigan and six in Northwestern Indiana.
“Four Winds Dowagiac is the next step in the continued economic development of the Pokagon Band,” says Wesaw.
Writer: Kathy Jennings, Second Wave Media
Source: Matt Wesaw, Pokagon Band of Potawatomi Indians
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