Casino talks about future building plans

It’s been a decade since plans to open a casino in Kings Mountain began to materialize and look like a reality.

The project was first announced in 2013 and in July of 2021, the Catawba Two Kings Casino opened its temporary facility with 500 slot machines which soon doubled to 1,000.

But the Catawba have bigger dreams of a resort and permanent structure.

In 2014, before the project was approved, the casino announced its plans to construct a 1.8 million square foot resort and casino on its 16-acre site. At that time, the full scope of the project was predicted to create 4,000 jobs and 1,500 hotel rooms on site.

With the location right off an exit of I-85, it was primed to be a hub of activity for events such as the American Legion World Series. 

“The location made it a prime choice,” Catawba Indian Nation Chief Bill Harris previously told The Star in 2014. “Local leadership was very receptive. We’re talking about bringing 4,000 jobs to Cleveland County, making it a travel-tourism destination. We’re looking at adding restaurants, shops, hotels, entertainment.”

So where do they stand with those plans now?

“We are continuing to operate the Catawba Two Kings Casino in a temporary facility that features 1,000 gaming machines, including electronic table games, North Carolina’s closest sportsbook to Charlotte and casual dining,” said a tribe spokesperson in an email. “It has become a popular destination as we see patronage steadily increasing.”

Some of the delay in construction is a result of two projects that must be completed first.

“Actual construction has not begun on the full casino resort and we do not have a timetable at this time, but infrastructure work is well underway on two key projects needed for its development, both of which are being funded by the Catawba Nation,” the email states.

 Those two projects consist of doubling the size of the Dixon School Road bridge over I-85 near the casino entrance and new sewer lines. 

“The full casino resort project is expected to create thousands of construction jobs in the region and 2,600 permanent jobs at full buildout,” the spokesperson said.

Just how much those projects will cost was not answered in time for this story.