More than two decades after first branching into casino hotel design by working on the Foxwoods Resort in Connecticut, JCJ Architecture is leading the design of an expansion for the Choctaw Nation’s property in Durant, Oklahoma.
The expansion breaks ground this spring and is scheduled to be completed in 24 months.
JCJ was an architect for the recently opened 65,000 square-foot casino expansion at the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Tulsa for the Cherokee Nation.
While it has played a big role for tribal casinos and hotels – JCJ also worked on the recently opened 65,000 square-foot casino expansion at the Hard Rock in Tulsa for the Cherokee Nation – the firm is now turning to Las Vegas. It recently opened an office in the city – the firm’s ninth – to secure more business locally from the commercial gaming resort industry.
Bob Gdowski, design principal and managing director of JCJ, said the firm has long been interested in Las Vegas.
“We’re learning there’s some opportunity for some new blood in that city, even though we’ve been around for eight decades,” Gdowski said. “A lot of properties are getting a little tired and outdated and money is being spent to keep those up. There’s a lot of action there.”
On the commercial side outside Nevada, the firm has worked for MGM Resorts International, Penn National, and Genting, at both Resorts World Catskills and Resorts World New York City at Aqueduct Racetrack.
For the Choctaw project, which also serves the Dallas and Fort Worth markets, JCJ Architecture will work alongside Tutor Perini Building Company and design partner Friedmutter Group. JCJ has worked with the Choctaw Nation for more than a decade on such projects as a cultural center, wellness center, and public safety headquarters.
The company works for multiple tribes in Oklahoma, including the Choctaw, Chickasaw, Creek, Cherokee, Comanche and Cheyenne Arapaho.
“Since (Foxwoods) we’ve worked for 60 tribes across the country. That’s kept us quite busy in the gaming sector,” Gdowski said.
The Choctaw project includes a 1,000-room hotel tower, expansion of the casino, and the addition of restaurants, retail, and a parking structure.
Scott Celella, chief operating office, and Amy Harrell, a senior associate and project director, talked about some of the design trends in tribal gaming.
“One of the major changes we are seeing is the addition of exterior amenities,” Harrell said. “We are going way past the gaming floor, bringing Las Vegas-style pools and resort-style bars to a lot of our properties… making them more than just a gaming destination.”
Harrell said they’re seeing more entertainment venues being added to client’s projects, as well as more convention and meeting space. Such additions allow properties to fill hotel rooms and hold conventions during the week, she said.
The trend of building properties with distinct themes intended to distinguish them from non-native venues has decreased over time. There’s been “more (of an) appeal for more contemporary spaces,” Celella said.
That was key with the Cherokee’s Hard Rock project, in which they built a new casino to replace an aging structure. As a result, the firm is working on refreshing the façade and exterior of the other casino buildings and hotels in the complex to make it more seamless.
“We’re recasting the facility to make it a more unified experience,” Celella said. “That same thing is happening in a number of places across the country.”
