PITTSBURGH (KDKA) — Most top-grade casinos have adjacent hotels, and that has been the goal of the Rivers Casino from day one.

Now it’s about to happen.

“Exciting news is putting it mildly,” Rivers general manager Bill Keena told KDKA money editor Jon Delano on Tuesday.

“Our employees are so enthusiastic. They’re excited. This has been a long time coming, getting this new hotel here.”

Keena hopes construction of the new $60 million establishment, called The Landing Hotel Pittsburgh, can begin by the end of this summer.

“We want to be able to turn dirt as quickly as possible,” the general manager explained.

“I’d like to be able to get that done in the next two or three months, and get going as fast as possible.”

Most but not all of the city approvals have been obtained, with the hotel design done by VOA Architects and construction by Pittsburgh-based Massaro Construction Group.

This new seven-story hotel is going to come out directly from the casino and extend forward about 20 feet from trees.

It’s going to be a tall hotel — bigger than the casino itself — but not quite as tall as the garage.

Keena says, built along the banks of the Ohio River, the hotel will be one of the finest in the city.

“It’s going to be a seven-story facility. It’s going to have 219 rooms, about 28 suites, some of the most spectacular views in the city of Pittsburgh overlooking the river and downtown,” he says.

The existing walkway and bike trail along the river will remain, and the hotel itself will be directly linked to both the gaming level of the casino and the second-floor banquet facilities.

The hotel is open to everyone, whether they gamble or not.

But like most casinos, says Keena, “There will be a combination of people who get full comp rooms and some who will just get a casino rate in the industry, so they’ll be a combination.”

Construction should take 18 months, and Keena hopes the hotel will be open for New Year’s Eve at the end of 2020.