Caesars Entertainment Corp. and a Northern California Indian tribe announced plans Friday to build a casino complex near Sacramento that would open in 2019.
The joint announcement between Caesars and the Buena Vista Gaming Authority – an entity of the Buena Vista Rancheria of Me-Wuk Indians of California – said the property would be named Harrah’s Northern California Casino.
Financing, construction plans, and other details were not disclosed.
The 71,000-square-foot casino would house 950 slot machines and 20 table games, a full-service restaurant, and three casual dining eateries.
Caesars said it would enter into an agreement with the tribe to manage, operate and maintain the property, which would be located on tribal land in Amador County, 28 miles northeast of Stockton and 32 miles southeast of Sacramento.
Caesars currently operates Harrah’s Southern California in San Diego County on behalf of the Rincon Band of Luiseño Indians.
The Buena Vista Rancheria of Me-Wuk Indians is a federally recognized Indian tribe with a 67.5-acre reservation. The tribe’s Gaming Authority was created in 2009 to own, develop, and operate the gaming and related businesses.
Caesars CEO Mark Frissora said in a statement the agreement, “advances our growth strategy to expand the reach of our brands into new markets and reinforces our over 20-year history working with tribal partners.”
Through its Harrah’s brand, the company operates Indian casinos in California, Arizona and North Carolina.
Rhonda L. Morningstar Pope-Flores, chairwoman of the Buena Vista Rancheria of Me-Wuk Indians, said the partnership with the Harrah’s brand “will attract more people to our destination.”
In 2016, Governor Jerry Brown signed an updated gaming agreement with the tribe on behalf of the state after a federal judge ended a decade-long legal battle with Amador County, which tried to halt gaming development on the land. The judge rejected the county’s legal argument that the Buena Vista property wasn’t a legal reservation for a gambling development.
The tribe’s gaming compact with the state allows for the casino to have a maximum of 2,000 slot machines.
The rural county of 38,000 residents is already home to the Jackson Rancheria Casino Resort.
