[toc]Pechanga Casino’s expansion plans just keep getting bigger. The California tribal casino is in the midst of a $285 million expansion already. That is not stopping it from deciding to add on even more projects.
The latest addition to the plan is increasing the size of the casino’s RV park. Like the casino expansion project, construction should finish on the RV park by the end of the year.
Pechanga Casino expansion includes spa, pool area, and more hotel rooms
Pechanga announced its plans to upgrade and expand its property in the fall of 2014. Rather than expand the gaming side, the project aimed to improve hotel amenities. Once the project is complete, the property will feature:
- 1,090 hotel rooms
- Two-story spa facility
- Four-acre pool complex
- 13 restaurants
The Temecula casino already has one of the biggest casino floors in California. The hope is the luxury accommodations will draw more players to the property.
The two-year construction project created 2,500 jobs. Once the expansion wraps, there will be 750 new regular employees. Pechanga already hosted a job fair this month to start filling some of the positions. According to the San Diego Union-Tribune, over 1,100 people attended the fair and submitted applications.
RV park improvements just getting underway
Originally, the casino had no plans to expand the RV park. However, the 168-space facility has been at capacity every weekend and most weekdays for quite some time. This despite new competition from Pala Casino, which opened a 100-space RV park last year.
With so much demand, it made sense to not only add 41 spaces, but also improve the on-site facilities. The shared pool, barbecue, and pet areas will all undergo renovations.
The 41 new RV lots range in size from 2,400 square feet to a two-car shared space. Rates for the spaces start at $50 a night.
It’s a race to expand for Southern California casinos
Pechanga is not the only Southern California casino area making improvements. In fact, several different casinos recently completed or are in the midst of improvements.
In addition to improving the property, Harrah’s Southern California (formerly Harrah’s Rincon) is also rebranding. The property changed its name and also brought in Baywatch star David Hasselhoff to promote the casino. In the marketing campaign, Harrah’s proclaims itself Funner, CA. Hasselhoff is the official Mayor of Funner.
Meanwhile, Viejas Casino is wrapping up construction on its five-story hotel. The property will be exclusively 21 and up and includes an adults-only rooftop pool.
The San Diego area is becoming an increasingly competitive casino market, so expect more, not less, casino expansion news in the coming months as these properties battle for market share.
