From Staff Reports 

The Tribal Council of North Carolina’s Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians recently approved building a $110 million casino and hotel near Murphy in Cherokee County, Principal Chief Mitchell Hicks said April 11 during an address at UNC Asheville.

Construction could begin as soon as this summer of the tribe’s second casino, he said. The tribe’s only casino now is located in Cherokee.

The additional casino would provide more revenue for the tribe to provide services for enrolled members living on the Qualla Boundary and elsewhere in Western North Carolina, Hicks noted.

The Tribal Casino Gaming Enterprise board proposed building a casino of 50,000 to 60,000 square feet and a 300-room hotel. The casino space would house up to 1,200 slot machines and 40 to 50 table games.

An 85-acre tract of tribal land near U.S. 19/74 is being considered by the tribe for the casino location.

Harrah’s would have first rights on operating the new casino, Hicks said. The second casino would be about an hour’s drive southwest of the existing Harrah’s Cherokee Casino resort.