Enoch begins to count down the days

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It's been 15 years of squabbling neighbors, government arm-twisting, cajoling, criticism and just plain hard work, but the Enoch Cree Nation is about to realize a dream when the

River Cree Resort and Casino opens its doors to the public in October.

Media types were given a sneak peek of the facility on Sept. 6 while the finishing touches were being put on casino amenities, including bars and restaurants, and the adjacent 255-room Marriott hotel.

The general look of the facilities springs from the natural world theme with marble, stone and wood featured prominently, and earth tones the primary palette, but the words "sexy" and "high tech" were bandied about plenty by executives on hand as the phalanx of reporters were herded around the worksite by resort VP and general manager Brian Lee.

The Mystic Ultra Lounge, for example, will be a "sexy" space for up to 300 guests to "let loose and have fun" while they mingle about in the up-market, LA-style bar with furniture designed to dance on.

Tap 25 is a "high tech" sports bar/restaurant combo with bleacher seating looking onto one of two NHL-sized hockey rinks built and managed by Canlan Ice Sports. The bar will feature a number of televisions throughout, broadcasting an array of events, including live feeds from the rink.

Twenty-five varieties of beer, many produced by micro-breweries in Canada, will be on offer to patrons.

High tech also describes the 600 slot machines that will grace the casino floor, with 100 per cent ticket in-ticket out technology that rids the need for coin exchange and hopper fills. The machines will produce a ticket for redemption at one of four kiosks or with a cashier. The machines will also be able to read the tickets so patrons can move from one slot to another around the floor without cashing in. The machines accept bills as well.

The gambling area is set within a large circle that radiates out from a centre bar to the 36-table games to the slots to a marble circulation path where patrons can move about freely. Bars and restaurants are set up on the outside of the marble path.

The inspiration of the resort is that it will appeal to a wide demographic, said Lee, and the restaurant areas are a reflection of that from the top-end steak-house called Sage, with a wine list sporting as many as 150 high quality wines, to The Kitchen Buffet-Bistro, which will also provide 24 ?hour room service to hotel guests.

Sage will feature high-end wines purchased by the glass, and a menu of reasonably priced Alberta beef dishes, as well as premium beef products, including the expensive Wagyu or Kobe Beef, the intensely fat-marbled delicacy of Japan. Sage will also feature a raw bar with a variety of Pacific seafood dishes, including fresh clams, oysters and crab, and sashimi quality fish, another Japanese delicacy similar to sushi. As a nod to the Native partners, bannock will be part of the bread offering to its customers.

The Kitchen offers a more "straightforward" menu that will appeal to the more moderate diner for breakfast, lunch and dinner, plus snacks. The buffet is expected to run about $13 for a dinner meal.

Robert Morin, president of Enoch Community Developments Corp., was on hand during the tour to speak about the final steps of the long journey the First Nation has taken to see the project through to fruition.

"In 1991, Enoch Cree Nation put forward a proposal to get into the gaming market, the gaming business. It didn't work out. Of course we had to negotiate with the province. It was a longer process than we thought . . . The third partner, Paragon Gaming, came forward and really gave us the administrative discipline to go forward with the gaming deal, which you see the culmination of, the beautiful resort that we built together as partners," Morin said.

In the early days, the partners faced down fiery disapproval by a group of neighbors upset that the project would be allowed, but as the September sun shone down on the large canpy built over the doors of the casino entrance, Morin was philosophical, with no grudge to bear.

"In retrospect, they stood up for a purposeOWe said all along that we would be good neighbors and we've demonstrated that, and we will continue to demonstrate that."

Morin said the band soon hopes to begin hiring the 800 employees needed for opening, tentatively set for Oct. 25. Rumor has it 5,000 applications have been received, many from the residents of Enoch itself. Morin hopes that of those 800 employees, 200 will be of First Nations descent.

About 30 per cent of the crew hired for the construction phase were Aboriginal, said Ledcor vice-president Bob Walker, who was proud of the fact that the project was coming in more than two months ahead of schedule. He said many of those employees were "keepers" and would see work on other Ledcor jobs.

Brian Lee said the effort to hire from the Aboriginal population would continue into the post-construction phase, with a focus on identifying staff with management potential and providing training for key people.

Richard Main, GM of the four-star Marriott Hotel, was proud to tour reporters through a guest room and the larger of the two hotel ballrooms. A mural depicting the divisions of farmland as Alberta is seen from the air provides a border around the Enoch Ballroom, an area that can be broken down into six meeting spaces. The River Cree Ballroom can be divided into four.

The guest rooms feature Aboriginal-inspired art above the beds, high-speed Internet, and are priced between $99 to $450 a night. Main said the suites on the east side on the top floor of the nine-floor hotel give a spectacular view of Edmonton. The hotel features an indoor pool, hot tub and fitness facilities. This is the first full-service hotel for the Marriott group in the city. Other holdings include the Ritz-Carlton Hotel chain, one of the world's grandest names in accommodation.

Profits from the project will be split 55/45 in favor of the band,with 15 per cent of band profits going into an Enoch charity. That charity will fund education and training projects, problem gambling programs and other social services initiatives.

Profits from the resort are also earmarked to improve housing on reserve and provide economic development opportunities, but Morin said it will be a couple of years before Enoch can begin to see a return on its investment. In the meantime, he is looking forward to the resort opening, and conscious of the responsibility going into the future to provide the most exciting and successful entertainment complex in Western Canada.