The opening of the Washington Casino is a long-awaited event, which led to a traffic jam. The streets of Washington were packed with people, despite the bad weather.
The construction work took 21 long months, in which people were waiting the opening of the casino. The opening ceremony gathered thousands of people, who were eager to see the cutting of the ribbon. The new casino is a major hub for the gambling community in Portland. Its strategic position, only 25 miles north of the downtown, makes it an important gambling venue.
The casino itself is 368,000-square-foot, where the fans of casino games can find all type of slot machines and gaming tables. The casino is also equipped with restaurants and bars, offering to its visitors a classy atmosphere. Regardless the different obstacles, which were met in the meanwhile, the US Court allowed the building of the casino.
This event takes an important place in the history of the local tribe, since it is viewed as something more than just the opening of the next casino. According to Bill Iyall, Cowlitz Tribe Chairman, this casino represents the equality between the tribes.
Cowlitz people have overcome many challenges so far, but the US Supreme Court finally gave a permission for the opening of the casino. This is the first step to the protection of the rights of the tribe and a symbol of their financial independence.
The event was marked by the speeches of the casino officials and tribal leaders. The streets of Washington were full of excited people, who were chanting “Open!”. Even the wet weather did not have the power to stop the people from celebrating.
The event invoked a great interest among all the people, which on the other hand led to a big traffic jam. The rows of people and cars seemed to occupy every corner of the streets and all the parking spaces near the casino were more than busy. Many people got stuck in traffic jams, but the happy event mitigated the bad feelings.
It is expected that the casino will attract 4.5 million visitors every year and a great part will be from Oregon. That, on the other hand, gives grounds for the Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde, who manage the Spirit Mountain Casino, to expect a decline when it comes to the casino revenue because of their proximity.
