Pascua Yaqui Tribe breaks ground on major expansion at Tucson property

In Arizona, the Pascua Yaqui Tribe officially broke ground on a major hospitality project at its Casino Del Sol in Tucson on July 12, that will see the addition of a 151-room hotel, a new RV Park complete with 90 spaces and the expansion of the existing conference center.

The expansion, the cost of which has yet to be disclosed, will include the addition of a six-floor, 93,200 square foot hotel, complete with 151 rooms. The new hotel’s design will match that of the current property’s design, which is reflective of the surrounding Sonoran Desert but will include a modern concept. The contemporary forms and exterior colors of the new hospitality offering will complement that of its desert mountain backdrop and the lobby will welcome guests with its clean, crisp and airy feeling.

The newest addition to the tribe’s Tucson property, which will be situated on 2.2 acres directly next to the existing casino, will feature amenities such as meeting rooms, a lounge area, an arcade and a fitness center. Additionally, the new hotel will have its own family-friendly pool with pool deck complete with a pool slide and bar. Each contemporary room will offer amazing views of the Sonoran Desert.

Full and part-time RVers will be able to take advantage of the new 90-space RV Park, as well as all of the casino’s amenities while the existing conference center at Casino Del Sol will benefit from a 9,600 square foot expansion along with the addition of break-out rooms as a complement to the current convention space.

Commenting on the major expansion, Chairman of the Pascua Yaqui Tribe, Robert Valencia, said, “The Pascua Yaqui Tribe is grateful that 24 years of running tribal enterprises has brought us to a place where we can continue to expand our hospitality offerings. These additions will create more jobs and will positively impact our Tribe, its members, and Southern Arizona as a whole,” according to the official press release.

Kimberly Van Amburg, Chief Executive Officer for Casino Del Sol, said, “The astounding support we have received from the community and our guests has led to us evolve the Casino Del Sol brand to include these additional amenities for families and RVers. This project will allow us to meet the increased demand of our customers and to better serve our meeting and convention clientele.”

McCarthy Building Companies is the general contractor while Las Vegas-based Cunningham Group Architecture is the project architect. Phoenix-based SICON is providing owner’s representative services and the new hotel, which is slated to be completed by the end of next year, is to be managed as a Pascua Yaqui Tribal Enterprise.

This is the second major expansion by the tribe on its AAA Four Diamond rated Valencia Road property as it opened its doors to the Casino del Sol Resort, Spa and Conference Center in November 2011. The $130 million expansion of the existing casino included a 215-room, 161,000 square foot hotel with more than 65,000 square feet of indoor and outdoor meeting and convention space.

The Pascua Yaqui Tribe also owns and operates the Casino of the Sun, about 2 miles from Casino Del Sol.