Vik Mahajan, General Manager of River Cree Resort and Casino, emphasizes the incorporation of indigenous culture in the ongoing expansion. (Image: Courtesy of River Cree Resort and Casino)

In the western Canadian province of Alberta, the Enoch Cree Nation has officially begun work on a $147 million project that will add an additional 240 hotel rooms to its River Cree Resort and Casino. This facility with 1,460 slots and 46 gaming tables, has already improved family access by adopting a new policy for indoor access for children.

Opened in 2006 before being fully acquired by the local indigenous nation some eight years later, the River Cree Resort and Casino lies approximately eleven miles from the center of Edmonton and already features a nine-story hotel. The four-star property currently also has six restaurants, 24,000 sq ft of meeting space, a trio of lounges and a 2,500-seat concert venue alongside a pair of casinos.

Extensive Enlargement 

The Enoch Cree Nation told the Edmonton Journal the expansion project is to involve the construction of an 18-story hotel tower with 240 hotel rooms as well as the addition of a further 38,000 sq ft of indoor and outdoor event space. The tribe revealed all construction work is scheduled to be completed by the spring of 2027 and is to also see the 49-acre facility add a small family-friendly water park with two waterslides.

Vik Mahajan has been the general manager of the River Cree Resort and Casino since February of 2013 and he proclaimed the expansion project is being carried out with indigenous culture ‘in everything that we do’. 

He went on to assert the entire scheme will economically benefit a number of local tribal communities while simultaneously being ‘huge for the city of Edmonton area as well as the whole province’. 

“We want to be able to house everybody, bring them to the River Cree Resort and Casino, showcase our culture, and show them luxury that they haven’t seen in the city,” Mahajan said.

Determined Direction

Cody Thomas serves as the Grand Chief of the Confederacy of Treaty Six First Nations, which includes the Enoch Cree Nation, and he pronounced the coming expansion is to allow the 18-year-old River Cree Resort and Casino to increase its guest capacity. The recently-elected figure explained such a prospect will create additional job opportunities and allow tribes from across Alberta to improve their overall standards of living.

“There’s an opportunity for us to build capacity in our next generations to come but provide sustainable resources for our nation as well,” Thomas said. 

“We always want to be the catalyst and create a template for other first nations. If we can do it as well as uplifting one another, that’s the goal. Our brothers and sisters shouldn’t be left behind. As a nation, we’re always prospering in the direction of finding tangible solutions for all of us to mutually benefit.” adds Thomas.

Lasting Legacy 

John Thomas is a member of the Enoch Cree Nation Council and he disclosed the River Cree Resort and Casino enlargement project is being internally funded with no debt servicing from other sources. He furthermore admitted to being ‘proud’ of the work his tribe has done in planning the hotel expansion and making sure the coming accommodation areas are more friendly for families with young children.

“There have been engagements with our nation members about what they would like to see and also hearing from patrons on some of the things they feel can complement this place,” Thomas said. “We want people to come to our resort and stay here and it will be a destination place for families to come and visit for hundreds of years to come.”