Four Winds Casino South Bend moving closer to completing expansion

SOUTH BEND, Ind. (WNDU) -Developing now at Four Winds Casino in South Bend is the next big investment to bring more gaming, entertainment, and gathering spaces to Northwest Indiana.

Construction is moving right along with an expansion of the casino floor, event centers, and their 23-story high-rise hotel.

They’re going all in at Four Winds Casino in South Bend.

The expansion will make up roughly a third of the entire property footprint when it’s all wrapped up.

Four Winds Casino is doubling down by adding 850 new slot machines, 11 new table games, and 45,000 sq/ft of additional space to their casino floor.

While the new development is sure to attract high rollers, it will also offer a new appeal to more casual visitors.

“A lot of people don’t want to come in and game. They want to come in and enjoy a nice meal, we have one of the top steakhouses in the area. We’ll be able to provide a pool area for the restaurant to sit and eat. We’ll have concerts. Even if it’s just entertainment in Kankakee with the two-person band in there. Not everyone wants to game and we think we can capture a lot more people who just want to come out for a night of entertainment and want to get away for a while,” said Four Winds South Bend GM Scott Rice.

The new 317-room high rise will host a variety of new amenities that also cater to guests who aren’t trying to ante up.

This hallway will connect the new wing to the rest of the gaming floor while also serving as entrances to their future spa and shopping area.

It will also lead folks to what will be their 24,000 sq/ft Ribbon Town Conference and Event Center.

“600 sit down dinner in our ballroom, which can also be divided into three to serve more parties and multiple bookings, as well as eleven additional small meeting rooms for smaller breakout sessions,” said Hotel Operations Senior VP Mary Smith.

They say this will open the doors for more weddings, conventions, and even live performances.

The third floor is where folks will find their pool area with a restaurant and bar, as well as more gathering spaces for groups.

The development isn’t just attracting guests, but job seekers too.

350 new jobs came to the area just for the construction of the expansion.

10% of those construction jobs are reserved to provide equitable employment for tribal members.

Once the expansion is complete, they’ll once again need at least 350 employees to fill roles from the casino floor, to the hotel lobby, to their new spa.

All that help will be needed to give Four Winds in South Bend the same presence in Indiana, as their New Buffalo location has in Michigan.

“To have the hotel that’s 23-floors, to be up top and be able to see the skyline of South Bend, I don’t think you could match it anywhere in the area,” Rice said.

The expanded casino room is expected to be ready for guests by August, so just a couple of months.

The rest of the expansion is looking to open by the first quarter of 2023.