New 18 Story Hotel Planned for Winstar

[ourulz2000]

Is there any plan to build something of substance like this at Riverwind Casino in Norman? I know that being in Norman probably doesn't require the hotel because most people visiting are able to drive back home at night, but it would be nice to see something of a little higher quality be developed on their land.

Doubt it. The Chickasaw Nation runs both and they are wanting to turn Winstar in a mini-vegas, and put all of their eggs in this basket. No reason to put a hotel in Norman.

[BoulderSooner]

would love for both riverwind and firelake to build golf courses ..

[HangryHippo]

would love for both riverwind and firelake to build golf courses ..

That would be a great addition. I just wish the Chickasaw Nation would do more to upgrade the area around Riverwind, be it a decent hotel, golf courses, etc.

[kevinpate]

Riverwind has a small hotel at present, fairly nice I'm told. Also, someone else finally finished and opened another hotel just south of there. It would likely require a sustained uptick in business before anyone else bothered, especially in light of several other small hotels opening from one side of Norman to the other in recent years.

[ourulz2000]

From their facebook page in June.

[bombermwc]

Riverwand has the benefit/drawback of being in-town. You can go gamble and then go home. No need for a hotel when most of your customers are residents of the area. Winstar, on the other hand, is in the middle of nowhere, halfway between two metros. So driving there, it makes sense to be able to stay. Although, i would say they probably need to do a bit more to make it a real destination resort first.

[G.Walker]

New High Rise Hotel @ Firelake:



You can say the same thing about Firelake, being its so close to Oklahoma City and Shawnee, however, I noticed a few weeks ago while traveling to Shawnee, they are constructing a new 12 story hotel. If you follow casino development, most major casinos in this area eventually expand. With Riverwind and Firelake both constructed in 2006 are newer casinos compared to Winstar (2004) , I am sure expansion for Riverwind is inevitable.

[OKCisOK4me]

I like the idea of Firelake having a hotel. Id honestly rather go there for a big name concert and after having a few drinks, itd be kinda nice to not have to drive back to the city or risk even a short drive to Shawnee.

[ourulz2000]

Riverwand has the benefit/drawback of being in-town. You can go gamble and then go home. No need for a hotel when most of your customers are residents of the area. Winstar, on the other hand, is in the middle of nowhere, halfway between two metros. So driving there, it makes sense to be able to stay. Although, i would say they probably need to do a bit more to make it a real destination resort first.

Give Winstar time. Been open only 8 years. Already huge casino, 2 hotels and a golf course. They'll keep updating and building.

[Teeg]

Looks good. That casino looks like it's gotten loooonger and loooonger every time I drive by.

I've always thought the Riverwind hotel seemed completely random, like it fell out of the sky and blocked the entrance that is most heavily used (I know valet is on the other side, which is technically the main entrance, but most people park and walk in the entrance by the hotel). It ate up a chunk of the closest parking, and seems like it was such an afterthought. It's pretty decent inside, though.

[CaptDave]

I wonder when Winstar is going to finally get rid of the huge tent behind the facade. That strikes me as humorous - kind of like "Pay no attention to the man behind the curtain." But they are obviously doing something right for that thing to grow so quickly into the large complex it has become.

[HangryHippo]

Looks good. That casino looks like it's gotten loooonger and loooonger every time I drive by.

I've always thought the Riverwind hotel seemed completely random, like it fell out of the sky and blocked the entrance that is most heavily used (I know valet is on the other side, which is technically the main entrance, but most people park and walk in the entrance by the hotel). It ate up a chunk of the closest parking, and seems like it was such an afterthought. It's pretty decent inside, though.

I absolutely agree with you. The layout of Riverwind is strange as hell. But the inside is decent.

[lasomeday]

Winstar will be like Vegas when they start tearing down the original hotels to build bigger hotels. That is when we know that Winstar has made it!

Riverwind capitalize on the fact it is close to Norman and the game day rush that occurs. Building a massive 5 star hotel will be the #1 option for people to stay on game days!

[ourulz2000]

Photos from Tuesday:

[Just the facts]

Traffic between Dallas and Exit 1 in Oklahoma was crazy during our trip to OKC. As soon as we passed the casino the traffic went away.

[kevinpate]

They are really coming along with their plans down that way. It caught my eye as I was driving down to pick up my son on the 24th.

[ourulz2000]

Over the next few years, I could see the Winstar/Thackerville area booming down on the river. There is already some businesses/hotels/restaurants just south of the casino. Those will only increase as DFW Metroplex continues to expand north of Denton and McKinney.

[CaptDave]

I wonder when they are going to get rid of the tent behind the facade?! Gotta hand it to the Chickasaw (?) tribe for making a TON of money down there and coming up with a pretty cool concept. If they don't already, Amtrak and Winstar should set up some sort of stop in Thackerville or bus service from Gainesville to Winstar. They could probably make a profit on a couple trains a day on weekends from Dallas and OKC.

[ourulz2000]

I wonder when they are going to get rid of the tent behind the facade?! Gotta hand it to the Chickasaw (?) tribe for making a TON of money down there and coming up with a pretty cool concept. If they don't already, Amtrak and Winstar should set up some sort of stop in Thackerville or bus service from Gainesville to Winstar. They could probably make a profit on a couple trains a day on weekends from Dalls and OKC.

They already have a bus service from Dallas to Winstar for like $10 or less I think.

http://winstarworldcasinoexpress.com...aspx?loc=wwc72

The golf course there is really nice I hear too.

[Just the facts]

The pick-up at WalMart. Perfect.

[Teo9969]

I agree, I don't think it will be legal in Texas for many, many years. Too many extreme conservatives running the state, the rural block is much stronger than the city reps/senators and doesn't want them and more than likely will not let it pass even out of committee. They would much rather force their constituents to go "somewhere else" to get their gambling or drink on out os sight of their fellow parishioners eyes. I can guarantee you the tribes and/or casino operators invested in Oklahoma, Louisiana and New Mexico probably lobby the Texas legislature hard to prevent it while the ones who don't have operations there are probably lobbying the other way. Remember, there are still some "dry counties" in Texas out in the rural areas and just like Oklahoma (and most states, like Colorado) the rural voters tend to be much, much more socially conservative than those living in and around the cities and tend to have the numbers to outvote the cities when it comes to legislation.

Denton is a dry county...and that's not even rural!

[ourulz2000]

The pick-up at WalMart. Perfect.

Take that with a grain of salt. I know a lot of people that go there, and they are by no means the "WalMart" types. A lot of DFW people with money go there just to have a good time.

[venture]

Take that with a grain of salt. I know a lot of people that go there, and they are by no means the "WalMart" types. A lot of DFW people with money go there just to have a good time.

Indeed. Plus if there are a good amount of people taking these buses, the parking lot at Walmart would be enough to accommodate them all.

[HangryHippo]

Do any of you think we'll ever see a hotel closer to those in Thackerville ever built at Riverwind? Or does the location in Norman make it too convenient for a hotel that large?

[venture]

Do any of you think we'll ever see a hotel closer to those in Thackerville ever built at Riverwind? Or does the location in Norman make it too convenient for a hotel that large?

Probably too close to everything else. Though I would like to see Riverwind get some love and grow more, but just don't think it'll happen. They should have plenty of land out there to roll out a full scale resort with a golf course and such. I would like to see them take a play on the name and also include an indoor waterpark/hotel as well to make it more of a destination resort.

Not really related, but I really wish all of their casinos were on the same player's club system. It is annoying that credits don't transfer from Winstar to Riverwind to Goldsby to Newcastle. If I can go to the MGM in Detroit and get credit to the same account I use out in Vegas, it should be the same here.