| Horse Racetrack | |
|---|---|
| Blue Ribbon Downs | |
| Location | Sallisaw, Oklahoma United States |
| Owner | The Cherokee Nation |
| Opened | 1963 |
| Closed | 2010 |
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Blue Ribbon Downs was an Americanhorse racing track located in Sallisaw, Sequoyah County, Oklahoma. The facility hosted American Quarter Horse, and Thoroughbredflat racing events until it closed permanently in 2010.
History[edit]
Blue Ribbon Downs started when Bill Hedge bought 102 acres just west of Sallisaw in 1960.[1] The track soon became known as a proving ground and gained recognition from the American Quarter Horse Association in 1963. Hedge sold the track to an investment group in 1973.
Parimutuel wagering[edit]
In 1982, Oklahoma voters approved pari-mutuel betting and the first pari-mutuel race at Blue Ribbon Downs occurred August 30, 1984, before twelve thousand spectators in a sweltering temperature above 100 degrees. The advent of legal gambling at the track caused a local construction boom with motels, restaurants, and other businesses locating near the track.
Bankruptcy[edit]
Over time, the popularity of gambling on horse racing waned and the track struggled financially with several owners, filing bankruptcy in 1997 and again in 2002. In 2003 the Cherokee Nation bought Blue Ribbon Downs and infused it with capital.[2] In 2005 the new owners converted it to a 'racino,'[3] a combination horse racetrack and casino. The track continued to struggle, and closed permanently in 2010.[4]
References[edit]
- ^Mize, Richard. Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture. 'Sallisaw.' Retrieved October 11, 2013.
- ^Choctowpurchase Blue Ribbon Downs,
- ^*Choctaws to sell Blue Ribbon Downs[permanent dead link]
- ^Cherokee chief: Racing done at Blue Ribbon Downs
- City initiates foreclosure on Blue Ribbon[permanent dead link]
Pink Ribbon Casino
Coordinates: 35°27′33″N94°50′41″W / 35.4593°N 94.8446°W
The Whitecap Dakota First Nation (WDFN) has opened the Dakota Dunes Resort after two years of construction.
Plans for the $38-million building first started 11 years ago, two years after the Dakota Dunes Casino was built.
Read more: Plans unveiled for 155-room hotel at Dakota Dunes
Chief Darcy Bear believes the project would spur economic activity in the community.
'This hotel is a key piece to our master plan. Once fully operational, because sadly right now we're open with COVID-19 guidelines, once fully operational (there are) 150 jobs — and that's to the region,' he added.
The hotel's operator said given the climate and safety measures because of COVID-19, it could see bookings reach up to 60 per cent capacity by August.
Read more: PGA Tour Canada not stopping by Saskatoon as Dakota Dunes Open loses sponsor
Currently Atlific Hotels has hired about a third of the staff.
'If we were opening in a non-COVID environment, we would've hired the full complement. We have to be fiscally prudent right now and we will staff up as revenues allow,' senior vice president Philippe Gadbois said.
The resort has 155 rooms, a rooftop pool, 10,000 square feet of meeting space and a farm-to-table restaurant.
First Nations leaders say the model of working with multiple partners to complete an economic development project is one other Indigenous communities can follow.
'This hotel is only going to enhance and bring more capacity. With capacity you bring revenue. With people walking through the doors, you bring more employment,' Federation of Sovereign Indigenous Nations Chief Bobby Cameron added.
Casino Ribbon Vector
The project received $8.6 million in funding from Indigenous Services Canada.
Read more: Sask., Whitecap Dakota First Nation sign environmental regulation agreement
WDFN added it has taken steps to ease the financial burden so the resort will at least break even in the short-term given the pandemic economy.
The Whitecap Dakota First Nation (WDFN) has opened the Dakota Dunes Resort after two years of construction.
Plans for the $38-million building first started 11 years ago, two years after the Dakota Dunes Casino was built.
Read more: Plans unveiled for 155-room hotel at Dakota Dunes
Chief Darcy Bear believes the project would spur economic activity in the community.
'This hotel is a key piece to our master plan. Once fully operational, because sadly right now we're open with COVID-19 guidelines, once fully operational (there are) 150 jobs — and that's to the region,' he added.
The hotel's operator said given the climate and safety measures because of COVID-19, it could see bookings reach up to 60 per cent capacity by August.
Read more: PGA Tour Canada not stopping by Saskatoon as Dakota Dunes Open loses sponsor
Currently Atlific Hotels has hired about a third of the staff.
'If we were opening in a non-COVID environment, we would've hired the full complement. We have to be fiscally prudent right now and we will staff up as revenues allow,' senior vice president Philippe Gadbois said.
The resort has 155 rooms, a rooftop pool, 10,000 square feet of meeting space and a farm-to-table restaurant.
First Nations leaders say the model of working with multiple partners to complete an economic development project is one other Indigenous communities can follow.
'This hotel is only going to enhance and bring more capacity. With capacity you bring revenue. With people walking through the doors, you bring more employment,' Federation of Sovereign Indigenous Nations Chief Bobby Cameron added.
Casino Ribbon Vector
The project received $8.6 million in funding from Indigenous Services Canada.
Read more: Sask., Whitecap Dakota First Nation sign environmental regulation agreement
WDFN added it has taken steps to ease the financial burden so the resort will at least break even in the short-term given the pandemic economy.
Some of those include a property tax exemption from the council and working with Bank of Montreal so the business doesn't pay interest on it's principal loan for six months.
Construction is still taking place on the property with an outdoor amphitheatre in the works.
Bear said WDFN is also working to attach a spa to the resort, but that is still in the planning phase.
Whitecap is about 35 kilometres south of Saskatoon.
