Press Releases

Reacting to the news, Odawa Casino Resort General Manager, Sean Barnard issued the following statement. “Issue 3 on the November 3rd ballot in Ohio approved gambling just as we had predicted. Polls prior to the vote showed that most people were in support of the issue, despite religious groups and local businesses fighting back with an anti-gaming campaign. However, like Michigan, Ohio is one of the states with an economy that many are claiming to be hopelessly damaged. Others argue that the inclusion of casinos within the state could resurrect the state's economy, or at least give it a nudge in the right direction.”

Speaking to how this will affect the Odawa Casino Resort, Barnard added: “Most of our business comes from within our State, and only a fraction comes from Ohio. The bigger issue for us is the closeness of those new properties to our Detroit customer base, which accounts for thousands of visits per year. Toledo, for instance, is just 60 miles away from Detroit and Cleveland is 100 miles closer to that market than we are. The Ohio and Detroit business that could be lost is worth millions to us and our sister Native American casinos. More casinos will ultimately grow the business as a whole, but these new players will obviously do what they can to aggressively attract our customers away from us.”

Although the new casinos are reported to be up to three years away from opening, Barnard predicts that his marketing costs will start to increase as soon as next year. “Detroit is on notice and so are the twenty, soon to be twenty one Native American casinos in Michigan. All of us will have to ensure that we are providing our guests with an experience that does more than just maintain their loyalty. We will all be forced to spend more on print advertising, outdoor billboards, radio advertising, special events and direct mail. Quite simply, our costs will rise and we would all be wise to start working on it now, and not regretting a lack of proactive marketing later.”

Owned and operated by the Little Traverse Bay Bands of Odawa Indians, the $140 million Odawa Casino Resort was named BEST CASINO IN MICHIGAN in 2009. The Petoskey resort opened in June, 2007 and features 1,500 slot machines, 29 table games, 5 table Poker Room, several restaurants, gift stores, a nightclub and a 137-room hotel.