Developers break ground on Mackinaw City Casino

Construction crews began working on the project last week and while some residents are excited for it, others are still unsure about how it will effect their community.

The property on which the casino is being built is the sovereign land of the Little Traverse Bay Band of Odawa Indians.

Tribe officials behind the project believe that the casino will take Mackinaw Cities tourism industry to the next level.

But the process of getting a casino in Mackinaw City has faced some obstacles.

In October the Mackinac City Village council denied the tribes request to have Class III gaming, which would have allowed the casino to operate a larger variety of games including dice and roulette.

It also would have put a 2% revenue-sharing requirement on the casino.

"We could have all profited from the two percent revenue," said Americas Best Value Inn General Manager Zachary Coonrod.

"Some of it could have went to the schools or new roads and improvements in the city."

At earlier public meetings, residents had stated that they had moral objections to the building of the casino.

Others said that casino customers would stick to the property itself and would not bring new revenue to the downtown area.

Now classified as a Class II casino, only bingo, pull tabs and lottos will be available.

"Ultimately, it won't make much of a difference what the class is," said Coonrod. "It will drive extra business into the city and hopefully after they go to the casino, they'll go downtown, go to the stores, hit up the fudge shops, t-shirt shops, all of it."

Construction of the casino, located just off Mackinaw Highway, one mile south of the downtown area, will be completed in May.

According to members of the Mackinac City Village council, casino representatives will eventually be allowed to once again request permission to operate as a Class III casino.