Last Thursday, Wind Creek Bethlehem which was previously known as Sands Bethlehem officially begun operations. This was marked by a huge grand opening ceremony where the guests and the staff members of the property not only celebrated the launch of the new property but also its recent rebranding.
The new gaming and entertainment facility is a collaboration between Wind Creek Hospitality and the PCI Gaming Authority of Alabama’s Poarch Band of Creek Indians. While the deal was officially made public in 2018, it was acquired from the Las Vegas Sands by Wind Creek Hospitality earlier this year. This deal was worth a whopping $1.3 billion.
Wind Creek Bethlehem is now home to 3,000 slot machines and electronic games as well as 200 tables games that are spread out across its 183,000-square-foot casino space. In addition to the gambling offerings, the facility also features an event center and shopping.
“Our team has worked to preserve what makes the property a special part of the Bethlehem community while introducing the Wind Creek brand, our Wind Creek Rewards program, and our focus towards guest service,” Jay Dorris, the President, and Chief Executive of Wind Creek Hospitality said.
Perhaps the most important aspect of the ceremony was the rebranding that it had to go through. The parent company has already spent nearly $15 million in rebranding. This is just the beginning.
Expansion Plans Underway
The gambling facility’s operators and owners already have massive plans for the property and they are all very lucrative projects. One of the plans that were revealed during the Thursday, October 10 grand opening ceremony of the casino was for online gambling. As it turns out, the officials of the property are, in fact, already in talks with the state’s gambling regulators with regards to adding online gambling and sports betting to their portfolio.
Online gaming aside, the tribe also has plans for a 276-room new hotel tower, an event space and a new carpet. There is also the proposed transformation of the No. 2 Machine Shop into an indoor adventure and water park that will cover 300,000 square feet. Next to the adventure park will be a hotel that will have between 400 and 450 rooms.
All this is definitely great news for the state as there will not only be more employment opportunities but the state is also set to benefit big time from tax revenue. Wind Creek has a stellar reputation in the United States for being a firm supporter of community initiatives in many places and Pennsylvania will also get to benefit from this. As it stands, the company owns and operates a total of 10 gaming and entertainment properties in Florida, Pennsylvania, Nevada, Alabama, and even the Caribbean.
