Gila River to open new casino in Arizona on June 30
Santan Mountain will open its doors next month.
US.- The Gila River Indian Community (GRIC) has announced that its new casino south of Chandler, Arizona, will open its doors on June 30. The project, named Santan Mountain, will be GRIC’s fourth casino.
The $180m casino was approved through the state’s reinstated and amended gaming compact in May 2021 and broke ground on December 2021.
Construction took about 18 months at the site near Chandler at Gilbert Road and the future Santan Mountain Drive, south of Hunt Highway. The 33,000 square feet gaming floor features more than 800 slot machines.
Three pits for table games including the high-limit table games. The roulette table in the high-limit area features a white roulette wheel. The high-limit area will feature its own bar, called Premia, which will have an indoor/outdoor space that opens to a garden.
A 7,000-square-foot BetMGM sportsbook, which features booths and individual seating. The sportsbook will rent booths so people can reserve a table to watch a game or event. The sportsbook also has a deli counter called Upper Deck Deli.
The food offers include a new restaurant, called Honey and Vine, which will feature menu items that include ingredients grown on the Gila River Indian Community, a three-restaurant food court and the main bar, the Hive.
Blake Katsnelson, the general manager, said: ”Personally I believe Gilbert, Queen Creek, Chandler, San Tan Valley, need that entertainment, need this destination.”
“This property is not anything you will see in the state of Arizona. This property is breaking the boundaries for what traditional gaming is,” added Katsnelson.
The casino is holding job fairs to hire about 700 people to staff the facility, he said. The job most needed are cooks and chefs of all levels.
