Full House Selected to Manage Manuelito Navajo Casino
Full House Resorts, Inc. announced today that, at its meeting
on February 20, the members of the Manuelito Chapter of the Navajo Nation
endorsed the action of the TSE Ndeeshglizh Corporation (the Development
Corporation), the development arm of the Chapter, selecting Full House as
the developer and manager of the Chapter’s casino project. Coincident with
this approval, the parties entered into a letter of intent to finalize the
terms of a management agreement. Full House can now enter into definitive
negotiations for a development and management agreement with the Navajo
Nation, which will be subject to approval by the National Indian Gaming
Commission in accordance with federal law. Native American Development and Consulting Services (NADACS) was retained
by the Chapter to select a management company, and Full House was selected
from a group of eleven companies that submitted proposals. Rhonda Ray,
President of the Development Corporation, stated that “We feel very good
about the qualifications of Full House. I have trust in them and
confidence that they are the right people to make our dreams become
reality.” Marlene Custer, the Development Corporation’s Vice-President,
added that “I am very happy and proud to know that Full House is going to
play a big part in assisting us with the achievement of the goals we
established two years ago.”
Calvert Garcia, a representative of Navajo Nation President Joe Shirley,
commented that “I was very impressed with the people at Full House, and
their approach to developing and managing casinos. The Navajo Nation is a
little late getting into the game, but we’re confident that Full House
will help us make up for lost time by assisting some of the Chapters that
have approved gaming.”
Preliminary plans include a 50,000 square foot casino with 600 slot
machines, twelve table games, a truck stop/travel plaza, three food
outlets, a gift shop and other amenities in the first phase of
development. The site is four miles west of Gallup, New Mexico on
Interstate 40.
Greg Violette, Chief Operating Officer of Full House, stated that “I
really like the location near the exit from a weigh station for large
trucks, and there is plenty of land available for future development in
addition to the casino. I believe this project will satisfy the
entertainment needs of Gallup and the surrounding communities, which are
underserved.”
Andre Hilliou, Chief Executive Officer of Full House, stated that he was
“grateful to NADACS, Manuelito Chapter President Milton Davidson and other
Chapter officials for selecting us as their partner, and for all of their
hard work in getting gaming approved by the Navajo Nation and the
Manuelito Chapter.” He also stated that he is “very impressed with the
leaders of the Manuelito Chapter. They are a savvy group, with great
vision and tremendous ambition.”
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