San Diego Metropolitan - Native American Gaming Proves Immune To The Economic Slowdown

Dingman, senior vice president and general manager of the new resort, says 45,000 square feet in the new casino are devoted to gaming, which will include 1,500-plus slot machines and 30 table games. “We will serve liquor and feature all games permitted under the California compact,” Dingman adds.

Meanwhile, the temporary Rincon Casino, which closes during the month of July, has added some new slot machine games, such as Hollywood Squares, The Price is Right and Raining Diamonds. “We will also have a new slot game, the Game of Life, based on the Hasbro board game, 90 days before our competitors,” says Dingman. “This is an example of Harrah’s ability to obtain new games first.”

The San Pasqual Band of Indians is a second tribe which last year opened a temporary venue with plans for a permanent gaming resort. John Barbry, vice president of marketing, says the tribe’s temporary casino, Valley View, now has more than 780 slot machines, nine table games and will be serving beer and wine throughout the casino as of April 1.

However, Barbry declines to comment on the permanent, 300,000-square-foot resort casino and 200-room hotel the tribe made plans in 2001 to build with First Nation Gaming serving as outside consultant. As to the construction status, Barbry only states, “The timeline has expanded. The plans made last year are being reviewed and modified. There will be some expansion in the future, but we have not determined to what extent yet.”

While also not ready to publicly state future expansion plans, Viejas, another of San Diego’s oldest gaming players, has many new works under way both inside and outside its existing operation. Steve Redfearn, vice president of marketing and entertainment, reports The Mezz deli is a new restaurant inside the casino, and branded food names like McDonald’s, Subway, Filippi’s and Rubio’s are new at the casino’s across-the-street outlet center.

Redfearn says “sponsorship deals and off-site stuff” are new to the Viejas operation. “We are partnering with current and new events in town and driving new traffic out to the casino,” he says, adding that Viejas’ virtual casino at the Gaslamp Quarter’s 2001 Street Scene added several new people to its rewards club. “Membership in our rewards club has increased from 12,000 to 150,000 in the past 14 months.”

In the past year, Viejas also lined up sponsorships with the Star 100.7 Jingle Ball at Cox Arena to benefit Becky’s House, the San Diego Spirit women’s soccer team, the Hall Of Champions museum in Balboa Park, and other concerts at Cox Arena and the Open Air Theatre. As for its own concerts, Redfearn says Viejas has just confirmed 17 shows for its 2002 Concerts in the Park summer season.

“Concerts in the last year have drawn people from the beach area and North County that would normally go to Las Vegas,” he says. “If we can get the Las Vegas types out here once or twice a year, it would show them they can come here instead of going there and save on gas, airfare, drive time, etc., and have a great experience.”

Down the road from Viejas, the Ewiiaapaayp tribe also has plans to offer casinogoers a great experience. By spring 2004, the tribe hopes to complete its own gaming venue at 4054 Willows Road in Alpine, currently the site of a Southern Indian Health Council clinic.

“Our first job is to construct a new and improved clinic on about two and a half acres of our existing 10-acre trust property,” says William Micklin, executive director of the Ewiiaapaayp tribe. He aims to have that project completed a year from now, with no interruption of clinic services. “Once they’re moved and are happy in the new clinic facility, we will demolish the existing structure and develop the new casino,” Micklin says, adding the casino plans are contingent upon an amendment to the leasing agreement between the tribe and the clinic.

“The tribe leases its 10-acre trust land to the clinic,” he says. “The agreement between the tribe and the health council is an amendment of the existing lease. We are waiting for an approval of the amendment by the Bureau of Indian Affairs to take back about seven and one-half acres to develop for gaming. On the two and a half acres remaining, a new clinic will be built.”

Micklin says part of the casino’s profits will go to the health clinic, estimated at $100 million over the first 15 years of operation. The Ewiiaapaayp tribe is still partnered with Action Gaming, which has changed its name to Luna Entertainment, on what will be known as the Leaning Rock Casino. With construction valued at about $160 million, it will feature 2,000 machines and 65 table games, and employ around 1,800.

“We have a superior location and access to the San Diego market,” Micklin says. “We’ll have new machines and new technology to offer our patrons, and be in an excellent position to compete. It’s an advantage to be so close to another casino (Viejas), because it gives our patrons two entertainment venues to choose from. It’ll be a very attractive location.”

Also on red-tape wait is the Jamul Indian Village of California. The tribe is still applying to take into trust 101 nearby acres on which to relocate its housing and tribal services, then build a casino on its own land. After completing a federally required Environmental Assessment on the land and being issued a Finding of No Significant Impact from the federal government, the tribe has decided to now voluntarily conduct an Environmental Impact Report due to lingering controversy, says Bill Mesa, executive councilman.

“The only reason we got slowed down here is there was so much controversy surrounding our environmental impact study,” he says. “If we’re lucky, we’re looking at the first quarter of next year to start construction.” After the trust land is secured, the tribe will construct a 240,000-square-foot casino with five restaurants, a planned 2,000 machines and 95,000 square feet of gaming.

Mesa says the tribe’s investors, Lakes Gaming, did an extensive marketing study in San Diego, examining all of the casinos. “Lakes Gaming’s marketing people said we could drive more than 2,000 machines easily,” he says. “We feel this is one way to get the economy back going again. We expect this to be a $200 million a year operation. It will create jobs in the surrounding area. People will start using the area. I think with Lakes’ experience and the way the tribe is pushing this thing, we’ll have a pretty competitive casino.”

Sycuan Casino, which originally opened in 1983 with a bingo parlor and expanded over time to around 233,000 square feet today, finalized its two-phase, two-year new construction and remodeling with the unveiling of a new 460-seat theater in January 2002. Roger Simpson, a professional engineer and Sycuan’s director of community development, says Sycuan’s number of patrons is up. In late 2001, the casino completed acquisition of the 105-room Singing Hills Resort at Sycuan, which provides patrons overnight accommodations and three PGA-recognized golf courses, along with country club memberships, restaurants and tennis courts.

The August 2001-opened Golden Acorn Casino in Campo also plans to build a hotel, but knowing that may take some time, the casino is arranging room to accommodate customer requests for meeting space.

“Companies that have offices in Imperial County and San Diego would like to hold meetings here because it’s the half-way mark,” says general manager Slack. The staff is in the process of moving the casino’s arcade and using its space to accommodate meetings and events. “We want to do something for the community with this room, allow space to hold birthday parties, girl scout meetings, tribe meetings and the Native American conference,” Slack adds. “It eventually will become the lobby to the hotel.”

Slack would like to break ground this summer on the 100- to 125-room hotel, valued at about $15 million. “It would take nine to 12 months of construction and we are looking into ideas for a pool, health spa, convention rooms and entertainment lounge,” he says.

Meanwhile, the new casino is seeing a business increase in its travel center, which opened last October with a truck stop and convenience store. “We’re seeing business grow in the travel center both from the travelers on I-8 and truckers,” Slack says. “The number of truckers parked here in our 96-stall lot has increased.” Inside the casino, a new dining venue, the Del Oro Lounge, opened in early March to serve pizza, salad, sandwiches, desserts, cappuccino and more.

The La Jolla, Pala, Pauma and Manzanita tribes could not be reached for comments concerning present gaming operations or future plans.

San Diego Gaming’s Future

It seems the sky’s the limit for San Diego’s casino business potential. Nevertheless, a slowing economy outside the gaming industry and growing numbers of local gaming halls has the casinos upping customer benefits, marketing outreach and player’s club memberships to capture both the locals’ and visitors’ gaming dollars. Furthermore, as San Diego’s gaming venues strive to become one-stop entertainment shops for locals and vacation destinations for visitors, hotels are becoming more of a necessity rather than an option.

“As gaming business grows, you will see more casinos building hotels,” says Barratt DeFay, marketing director for the Golden Acorn. “As gaming matures, hotels become a natural part of that growth. Some properties will never build one, but for other properties such as us, it’s a necessity for our location. Properties that tend to be more rurally situated will have one. If you’re going full-service with an entertainment facility, spa and golf course, it’s part of the full package.”

“California gaming is the newest trend on a national basis,” says Harrah’s Rincon Casino’s Dingman. “The introduction of hotels, restaurants, things you would see in Las Vegas, are all being planned or built.”

“I see a lot of the casinos upgrading their product and becoming a resort destination, not just appealing to the local market,” Barona’s Devine says, adding that Barona, Sycuan and Viejas have recently launched a cooperative venture with the San Diego Convention and Visitors Bureau to target outside markets. “Each (of the three tribes) has put in $200,000 to the program,” Devine says. The venture will first target Orange County with the use of cable TV ads, billboards, direct mail and print advertising. “A three-casino comp card allows customers to go to all three casinos and get discounts and benefits, such as valet parking, discounts, free play at the machines, etc.,” Devine adds.

While anticipating Barona’s hotel might be a minor shake-up in business between San Diego’s big three, Andy Asselin, Viejas’ vice president and general manager, sees no long-term effect.

“Barona will affect us more than the Rincon hotel, since Barona is in East County,” Asselin says. “In the short-term, these hotels may have some impact, but in the long run, gaming is growing.”

“All three casinos are run very well,” Viejas’ Redfearn adds. “Everyone is very proud of the ConVis deal. It’s unprecedented.” But even with this drive to attract more outsiders, the casinos are making sure locals are not forgotten.

“I think gaming is becoming a more frequent option for entertainment for San Diego County residents” says Valley View’s Barbry. “And that points to a maturing San Diego County gaming market.” Barbry says while Valley View always is striving for operation efficiency, it also is trying to improve its gaming product by adding more popular slot games, modifying the buffet menu, and adding amenities like beer and wine.

“Also we have found that as we develop our regular, returning guests, they like the benefits of our players club and our generous cash back program, which pays up to five times more cash back for every dollar played than other San Diego casinos.”

Viejas’ Asselin also is seeking ways to balance efficiency with customer benefits in the wake of a slower San Diego economy and increased local competition.

“As the economy slowed we increased our marketing through more direct mail targeted marketing. We looked at efficiencies from within, but did not lay anyone off. It forced us to look at how we were running our business internally and to operate more efficiently.”

The Golden Acorn’s Slack sees “aggressive marketing and an internal promotion of fun and friendliness throughout the property” as an answer to the growing number of competing casinos. “We provide outrageous customer service and have received positive feedback about that. Customers feel it’s a very comfortable place to play and have been surprised about the beauty of our building.”

Customer aesthetics are important at Sycuan, too, reports Simpson. “We’re always trying to improve the attractiveness of the games and trying to make our guests more comfortable,” he says. “We’re working with the bus line to improve our customer service. We have an updated database for customer memberships to allow them to redeem their point systems for prizes and benefits.”

From new games, restaurants and membership clubs to golf courses, luxury hotels and resort settings, San Diego’s billion-dollar gaming industry continues its booming expansion to bring customers and the San Diego economy Las Vegas-style design, amenities and industry perks.