It was 1997 when the state of Washington legalized house-banked card rooms, and December 2000 when Northern Quest Casino, owned by the Kalispel Tribe of Indians, entered the local gambling market. Like a bell curve, the number of licensed house-banked card rooms in Spokane County rose annually from 1997 until 2000, and has since dropped off. It now has 1,200 employees, 1,225 electronic games, and 39 gaming tables, says Phil Haugen, executive director of the Kalispel Tribe Gaming Agency. Four casinos have shut down over the last five years and others are struggling to turn a profit, raising the specter of other closures as well.Īt the same time, the nearest tribal casino, Northern Quest Casino, in Airway Heights, steadily has expanded its operations. Nontribal gaming operations are having a tough time surviving in Spokane County because of a mix of regulatory and competitive pressures, industry representatives say.
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