A week after another tribe held its groundbreaking on a $400 million casino in Sacramento
T
hunder Valley Casino Resort in Lincoln, California plans to break ground Tuesday on a $100 million indoor entertainment center, to be called The Venue.
It will seat as many as 5,000 people when it opens in late 2022 and will sit adjacent to the casino itself, tribal spokesman Doug Elmets said Friday, as reported by The Sacramento Bee.
The groundbreaking by the United Auburn Indian Community, the owner of Thunder Valley, will come a week after the Wilton Rancheria held its groundbreaking on a $400 million casino called Sky River, which will become the seventh tribal casino in greater Sacramento and the first new casino since the Hard Rock resort opened in late 2019 in southern Yuba County. Together, the Sacramento-area casinos operate around 13,000 slot machines, about as many as the casinos in Reno.
With about 3,500 units, Thunder Valley operates more slots than any of its regional rivals and goes to great lengths to expand its gambling and hospitality offerings as competition increases. Elmets said Thunder Valley is confident the COVID-19 pandemic will have eased to the point that large indoor gatherings will be allowed by the time the theater opens.
He said Thunder Valley is already in discussions with multiple performers about appearing at The Venue, including Stevie Wonder, Jimmy Buffet, Sammy Hagar, Rod Stewart and Chicago. The center could also be used for comedy shows and sporting events such as boxing.
