http://www.jsonline.com/business/panel-endorses-hotel-for-potawatomi-casino-ta4bv6p-140660803.htmlPotawatomi Bingo Casino's 20-story hotel proposed for Milwaukee's Menomonee Valley won its first approval in the city's zoning process on Monday.
The Plan Commission unanimously recommended to the Common Council conditional approval for the project, pending submission of the project's final design. The Forest County Potawatomi Community wants to build the hotel, with around 380 rooms and a four-story parking structure, in front of its casino at 1721 W. Canal St.
If it secures financing and zoning approval, the Potawatomi community plans to begin construction in late spring on the hotel. It would open in spring 2014, and include a 180-seat casual dining restaurant and spa.
Most of the commission hearing was devoted to a design presentation by project architect John Culligan, principal at Minneapolis-based Cuningham Group.
"We're about halfway through the design," Culligan said. "So we're taking a lot of input from a lot of folks."
The hotel's top level would include a swimming pool and an open air deck with views of downtown and the valley, Culligan said.
There would be a large Potawatomi sign near the building's top, similar to the sign on downtown's Milwaukee City Center Hilton. The plans also call for a lower-level feature to resemble a glowing "flame," similar to one that already tops the casino.
The modern design would be open, airy and welcoming, Culligan said, serving "as an icon on the skyline that everyone will be proud of."
No one attending the public hearing spoke in opposition to the proposal.
The hotel would expand the casino's customer draw from what's now a 25-mile radius to a roughly 100-mile radius, casino officials have said. The hotel would connect to the casino, but would be on nontribal land and subject to property taxes and the city's hotel tax.
Potawatomi Bingo Casino, which draws 6 million annual visits, is the largest tribal casino nationwide that lacks a hotel.
