WAYLAND TOWNSHIP, Mich. (WOOD) — Gun Lake Casino near Wayland is getting ready for its next expansion project: a hotel and resort.
Leaders from the Gun Lake tribe and casino will hold a groundbreaking ceremony Thursday for the Phase 5 expansion. The estimated $300 million project includes building a 15-story, 252-room hotel on the west side of the casino. The expansion will also feature the Aquadome, which will be three pools inside a 32,000-square-foot glass dome.
Tuesday’s announcement comes exactly eight months after Gun Lake Casino celebrated the grand opening of its Phase 4 expansion, a $100 million project that included more casino floor, 500 slot machines, more than a dozen table games and three restaurants: CBK, Shkode Chophouse and 131 Sportsbar and Lounge.
A September 2021 photo shows the new Big Wheel electronic game at Gun Lake Casino. 
A September 2021 photo gives a bird’s eye view of Gun Lake Casino’s Shkodè Chophouse. 
A photo taken in September 2021 gives a bird’s-eye view of Gun Lake Casino’s new restaurant, Craft Bar Kitchen. 
A photo taken in September 2021 gives a bird’s-eye view of Gun Lake Casino’s new restaurant, 131 Sportsbar & Lounge.
Adding a hotel and resort has been part of the tribe’s plans for more than a year as it strives to make Gun Lake Casino “an entertainment destination of the Midwest,” a Tuesday news release states.
Gun Lake Casino announced its plans for a hotel and entertainment venue in April 2021. Since the casino opened in 2011, visitors planning a longer stay have had to find hotels and lodging elsewhere.
A spokesperson for Gun Lake Casino says the Phase 5 expansion is expected to have a $650 million impact on the economy.
Project leaders are expected to share more details about the hotel and resort during Thursday’s groundbreaking event, which will start at 11 a.m. in the casino’s West parking lot on 129th Avenue just east of US-131.