Million Dollar Elm Casino on Track for February Opening

"Osage Nation Principal Chief Jim Gray, Tribal Council members and Gaming Enterprise board members held a groundbreaking ceremony in October for the 35,000-square-foot gaming facility, located at 222 Allen Rd., 4 miles southwest of the intersection of Highway 123 and Highway 60.

"'Our future doesn’t rise and fall on gaming, but our gaming enterprise is a catalyst to expanded business development opportunities as well as a revenue source for funding vital programs such as education and preserving our culture and language, thus enriching the lives of the Osage people,' said Jim Gray, Principal Chief of the Osage Nation.

"The casino’s main attraction will be 600 electronic gaming devices, several table games, a restaurant, bar, deli and convenient parking for 700 vehicles. The restaurant and outdoor dining venue offer beautiful views of the wild horse refuge and the downtown Bartlesville skyline. The restaurant will offer a full buffet with salad bar, bakery, dessert, Italian, Tex/Mex and American/BBQ offerings as well as an a la carte menu. The bar will be a themed upscale lodge-look, live music and an outdoor patio area with the same view.

"Bartlesville leaders welcome the casino for the jobs it will bring to the area, as well as the additional entertainment, visitors and economic boost such a facility creates. The casino will employ more than 200 workers in the gaming and restaurant venues.

"…The Tribe is working closely with county officials on all aspects of security and traffic planning as well as partner with the county on road improvements.

"The casino’s name, 'Million Dollar Elm,' refers to a real chapter in the Tribe’s history. During the oil boom in the early 1900s, oil lease auctions were held under a prominent elm tree near the Osage tribal building in Pawhuska. On November 11, 1912, 18 oil leases were sold for more than $1 million, and from that day forward the tree was called the Million Dollar Elm."