Seminole Casino Brighton in Okeechobee, Florida, this week held a topping-out ceremony at its new site, scheduled to open in early 2025.
During the ceremony, construction crew hoisted the final steel beam and secured it atop the structure. According to a release, the ceremony is attributed to an ancient Scandinavian ritual of placing a tree on the top of a newly completed building, celebrating construction efforts.
“Today is an exceptional day,” said Jim Allen, CEO of Seminole Gaming CEO and Hard Rock International Chairman Jim Allen in a statement. “A vision has truly become a reality as we placed the final beam atop this new property. Everyone involved in this project, from the designers and engineers to the day-to-day laborers, are showing the world what the Seminole Tribe is truly about – unconquered vision, unparalleled service, and unlimited future.”
The new resort, Seminole Brighton Bay Hotel & Casino, will replace the existing casino that opened in 1980. It will include a 38,000-square-foot casino with space for 640 slot machines and 18 table games, plus a smoke-free gaming space with 104 slot machines. A high-limit area will feature 42 slots and four table games.
There also will be a 24-hour restaurant, steakhouse, and fast-service and carry-out café. Also planned are an indoor event space for banquets or bingo games that can accommodate 900 and a 10-lane bowling alley.
A hotel, the first to be built on the Brighton Seminole Reservation, will house 100 guest rooms on four stories.
The resort’s new name, Seminole Brighton Bay Hotel & Casino, is a nod to sportfishing sites near Lake Okeechobee. Fisheating Bay and Fisheating Creek, about two miles from the hotel casino, get their names from the Seminole term Thlothlopopka-Hatchee, translated as “the river where fish are eaten.”
“Today’s ceremony marks a special moment for the Seminole Tribe of Florida and the Brighton Seminole Reservation,” said Seminole Casino Brighton General Manager Marty Johns. “The new casino and hotel complex is expected to increase the number of tourists to the region, which is very important.”
