There’s been a lot of talk about how big South Bend’s proposed tribal casino can be—today we found out how big it will be.

“Well the facility itself is going to be approximately 175,000 square feet; the gaming floor will be about 55,000 square feet. To put that in relative terms those of you that are familiar with New Buffalo, New Buffalo’s casino floor is about 140,000 square feet, so this will be about a third of that, a little bit bigger than a third of New Buffalo’s floor,” said Four Winds CEO Frank Freedman.

While the Pokagon Band’s application for land in trust talked about an 18 story hotel with 500 rooms, the phase one plans for the South Bend site revealed today don’t include a hotel of any size.

“You know we have three other sites, we want them to complement each other, not feed off each other,” said Tribal Chairman John Warren. “So I think this first phase is a very calculated way of testing the market.”

Warren says that the application process identified the maximum the tribe is allowed to do on the South Bend site.

“There's obviously business reasons they have to do this in a phased way, that’s how they did it in New Buffalo too,” said Mayor Pete Buttigieg, (D) South Bend. “But what we know that kind of revenue and some very serious jobs are coming from the get go.”

The South Bend facility will have 1,800 electronic gaming machines, meaning the city would be in line to collect up to $2 million per year from the tribe since the level of payment depends directly on the number of machines.

“We have about 1,200 jobs, that is a big number by South Bend standards,” said Mayor Buttigieg.

700 additional jobs will be connected to the construction of the facility which is already underway and on pace to wrap up in early 2018.

The South Bend site will be the only Four Winds property without table games, and its electronic games will technically be sophisticated versions of bingo. “We wouldn't have moved forward with the project if we thought it was an inferior product,” explained Freedman. “There's casinos like Porch Creek, in Alabama that have literally thousands, 2,500 machines, class two.”

By restricting the gaming action in South Bend to Class Two bingo-based games the tribe can move ahead without having to negotiate a state compact with Indiana.

Meantime, it appears that the city is in line to receive some $2 million per year in revenue sharing payments. The figure is based on the number of electronic games planned for the South Bend casino.

The Four Winds South Bend will have three bars and three restaurants including the Copper Rock Steakhouse and the Buffet. “This is a full blown casino, it’s a full sized casino, it’s not a satellite casino,” said Freedman. “This facility’s going to have, almost 800 dining seats.

the following version was posted earlier:

Four Winds South Bend is officially under construction.

The Pokagon Band of Potawatomi Indians held a press conference late Wednesday morning and announced that the 175,000-square-foot casino will include 1,800 Class II gaming devices, four restaurants, a player's lounge, a coffee shop, three bars, a retail outlet, and approximately 4,500 parking spaces including an enclosed parking structure.

The casino is scheduled to be complete in early of 2018 and will employ approximately 1,200 people. Approximately 700 jobs will be created during construction.

"We are very excited to begin construction on Four Wind South Bend. Once operating, it will generate revenue to fund services and programs that will create additional economic opportunities for Pokagon Citizens, the city of South Bend, and also fund community projects, local organizations and schools," said John P. Warren, Chairman of the Pokagon Band of Potawatomi Indians.

"On behalf of the National Indian Gaming Association (NIGA), I would like to congratulate the Pokagon Band on its historic 166 acre Tribal Homeland Restoration," said Ernie Stevens Jr., Chairman of NIGA. "This 22-year journey has been a long one for Pokagon Citizens. We are happy to see the United States fulfilling its promises from Treaties made long ago. It is only fair and just for the sacrifices our Elders made on our behalf."

"When Four Winds New Buffalo opened nine years ago, it set a new standard for gaming in the Midwest. It has since received more than 300 local and national awards," said Frank Freedman, Chief Operating Officer of Four Winds Casinos. "Four Winds South Bend will offer the same high-level of service and amenities that our guests have come to expect including signature restaurants such as Copper Rock Steakhouse and The Buffet. We look forward to providing more details on the property as well as information about job fairs and vendor fairs as we progress through construction."

Mark Peterson is at the press conference, and he will have a full report on NewsCenter 16 this evening.

The Pokagon Band of Potawatomi Indians is holding a press conference to reveal details about the new Four Winds South Bend casino. More info: wndu.com/a?a=405238865 Posted by WNDU on Wednesday, December 7, 2016