Destination: Sky City Casino Hotel

ROAD TRIP
Destination: Sky City Casino Hotel
Acoma Pueblo Tribe - Acoma, NM
T
his month Indian Gaming magazine traveled to Sky City
Casino Hotel, located on I-40 about an hour west of
Albuquerque, New Mexico. Owned and operated by the Pueblo
of Acoma, the property is the oldest gaming business in New
Mexico. Since opening as a bingo hall in 1988, when Congress
enacted the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act (IGRA), Sky City
Casino Hotel has grown into one of New Mexico's premier
gaming destinations.
Upon our arrival at the casino, Don Kennedy, marketing
director for the property, told us some history about the Acoma
Tribe and their reservation. The 2,000-year-old Sky City
looms 370 feet above the desert floor, originally built on top
of a sandstone mesa for strategic defense. The oldest continuously inhabited area in all of North America, Sky City still
serves as the physical and spiritual homeland for the Acoma
people. When Francisco Vasques de Coronado's Spanish army
approached the mesa in 1540, Coronado was impressed by the
city's defensive positioning. The army's Capitan Hernando de
Alvarado described the city as, “one of the strongest ever seen,
because the city was built on a high rock.”
Today, many of the Acoma people still live in or near Sky
City, where over 400 adobe (mud brick) and sandstone
structures can still be seen today. As part of their unique
The casino attracts professional truck drivers with its popular semiannual $120,000 truck giveaway.
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May 2006
culture, the homes are owned by Acoma women and are passed
on to their youngest daughters each generation. Today, the tribe
has 6,000 members spread over the 431,000-acre reservation.
Sky City Casino Hotel has 62,000 sq. ft. of gaming space
that encompasses 800 slot machines, about half of which are
on the ticket in/ticket out system. A majority of the machines
have denominations that start at .01¢ and range up to as much
as $5. Utilizing the Konami players club system, the casino
currently has about 60,000 members in its players club.
Enticing these players is a “winners board” prominently
displayed in the casino, where their popular Wheel of Fortune
games alone have had eight winners, each pocketing from $1
million to as much as $6.3 million.
In addition to its variety of slot machines, the casino has 10
table games offering blackjack, single-deck pitch blackjack,
three-card poker, roulette and craps. The casino hasn't
forgotten its roots, still offering bingo in an 820-seat bingo hall,
which also converts into an 850-seat entertainment center
where name entertainers perform frequently.
As we walked the casino floor, Kennedy explained the
diverse market the casino works hard to attract. As a local's
casino, it has a pool of 10,000 adults to draw from in the surrounding area. A promotion that has energized this local community is a monthly car and cash giveaway, where guests who
join the players club can put their name into a drawing drum
whenever they visit the casino. Because they must be present
to win, this has acted as a catalyst for filling the casino on giveaway days.
Another even larger market share for the casino is the vast
numbers of both truckers and cars, totaling over 25,000, which
pass in front of the casino daily. Between 800 and 1,000 truckers stop every day at the new Sky City Travel Center, designed
specifically for truckers, which provides shower, laundry and
barbershop facilities. An entire section of the center has even
been dedicated to providing one of the Southwest's best
selections of chrome accessories for truckers.
Kennedy explained that a promotion that has successfully
appealed to these truckers is a twice-a-year $120,000 semi-truck
giveaway. Professional drivers with commercial licenses can join
the players club and enter their name into a drawing drum once
ROAD TRIP
Guests can unwind in the relaxing courtyard pool at the 3-Diamond Sky City Hotel.
a day, or whenever they pass through. Given the nature of their
work, these truckers do not need to be present to win. So far,
Sky City Casino Hotel has given away three trucks, and the
enthusiasm from these players has been incredible. Now not
only can truck drivers passing by on the freeway stop to rest,
re-fuel, buy food, and enjoy entertainment, but they also have
a chance to win a brand new Kenworth truck.
Other ongoing promotions include a semi-annual RV and
custom motorcycle giveaway. Weekly slot tournaments are
held every Monday and Wednesday, and weekly single-deck
blackjack tournaments are held every Tuesday and Thursday
evening. “Because the market is smaller, every guest is very
important and we treat everyone like family,” Kennedy said.
“Training for the casino employees is just so important so the
guests really have a wonderful experience.” In addition to
superior customer service, the casino itself has to continuously
adapt in order to keep the slot floor fresh, which is very important. The casino will be changing about 25% of its floor this
year alone.
There are several dining options to fulfill one's palette at Sky
City, including the Huwak'a Restaurant, offering a delicious, all
you-can-eat buffet. Available are traditional favorites such as
posole, green chili stew, tortillas and a taco bar. The daily buffet also has plenty of continental and American favorites. Next
door to the buffet is Huwak'a Snack Bar, where traditional American fare, like cheeseburgers and fries, share a menu with such
international options as authentic Greek Gyros. Also available
inside the casino for a quick bite is Club 102 Lounge. Aside from
a huge selection of delicious juices and other non-alcoholic be
erages, Club 102 offers a variety of hotdogs and pizzas for
quick sustenance on the go. Additionally, the Pinon Tree Coffee Bar offers players their favorite coffee drinks.
Attached to Sky City Casino via a three-story rotunda lobby
is the Triple-Diamond Rated Sky City Hotel and Conference
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May 2006
Center. The hotel includes 134 rooms, each featuring Southwestern décor with solid wood furniture built by Acoma craftsmen. The hotel also includes 3,000 sq. ft. of convention space,
and is available for business groups as large as 150. The
addition of a hotel has added a new and important dimension
to the property, now encouraging gamers and non-gamers
alike to stay on the property, especially during exciting events
the casino puts on.
One of the most exciting events at Sky City in recent years
was when Captain Robbie Knievel set a world record by jumping eighteen semi trucks outside of the casino. About 15,000
spectators from all over showed up at the property and the event
was so big that Interstate 40 had to be temporarily closed down.
The A&E channel covered the event, and Robbie Knievel
successfully made the jump, proving to be an incredible
success for the both Knievel and the casino. Another unique
event came last year when the film “Black Cloud,” written and
directed by Rick Schroeder, was shot in the area. The casino
sponsored the cast party, which was held at the casino and was
a real treat for casino guests who got to see and meet actors
from the film.
Next, Kennedy drove us through the sprawling reservation,
until reaching the brand new Sky City Cultural Center and
Haak'u Museum. This unique museum
reveals over 1,000 years of tribal history,
displaying arts and artifacts from North
Americas' oldest continuously inhabited city.
This museum cost more than $15 million
to complete, and every detail in the
40,000 sq. ft. building has been carefully
considered. The materials, architecture, and the direction the building walls
face, have been conscientiously chosen to
reflect the vast history of the tribe. Even the
T-shaped doorways and sandstone walls evoke Acoma ancestral architecture. Many Acoma artisans created the decorative
elements that are found throughout the building, including the
hand-carved beams, pottery chimneys, and metalwork.
While remaining true to the ideals of the tribe, the new building meets all standards for professional museum management,
enabling the showcasing of treasured Native American exhibits.
Two exhibits will premier at the museum's grand opening,
including “The Matriarchs,” which traces the evolution of the
celebrated Acoma pottery through its four
most famous artisans, and “The Cotton
Girls,” a collection of extremely rare and
never-before-seen Acoma textiles representing the tribe's lost art. “The cultural
center and museum are a reflection of the
Acoma people's desire to preserve a rich
history,” said cultural center and museum
director Brian Vallo. This building serves
as a real tribute to what is a rich history,
and will serve as a messenger to tourists
and tribal children alike, and lend a hand
in keeping their unique culture alive.
The Acoma Tribe is also involved in
several non-gaming businesses, including Acoma Land and Cattle, which is a
large, progressive, diversified cow calf
stocker operation utilizing the resources
of Red Lake, Bar 15 and Martin Ranches.
The enterprise is dedicated to raising and
marketing quality beef. These three ranch
operations comprise over 230,000 acres on
three counties in Western New Mexico.
The Acoma Game and Fish business is
tucked away in the canyons and mesas of
Acoma Pueblo, where some of the largest
free-ranging bull elk can be hunted.
Acoma's trophy elk-hunting program has
been in operation on the 431,000-acre
Acoma Reservation since 1995. The
program, through the implementation of
sound game management principles, has
created a premier world-class trophy hunting area, which people travel from all
over the world to participate in.
In addition to economically benefiting the tribe and the Acoma Pueblo
people, the casino itself has created
more than 540 jobs for the surrounding
area. Casino revenues have truly benefited this tribe, and have wisely been
invested in the future of the tribe by
building schools, health-wellness
clinics, college education programs,
new fire and police buildings, a land
buyback program and a new, outstanding cultural center.
Offering numerous gaming options, exciting promotions and
outstanding service, Sky City Casino Hotel makes guests feel
welcome and comfortable. This fun, exciting property has
something for everyone and is truly a must-visit destination in
the Southwest. ♣
For more information about Sky City Casino, visit
www.skycity.com
May 2006
Indian Gaming 37