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About Smoke signals. (Grand Ronde, Or.) 19??-current | View Entire Issue (Sept. 15, 2015)
S moke S ignals SEPTEMBER 15, 2015 5 General Council briefed on Spirit Mountain Casino By Brent Merrill Smoke Signals staff writer General Council received election results and an update from Spirit Mountain Casino General Manager Stan Dillon on Sunday, Sept. 13, at the Tribal Community Center. The Grand Ronde drum group opened the meeting with a drum song. Drummers were Bobby Mer- cier, Kaikanim Mercier, Kyoni Mercier, Brian Krehbiel and Travis Stewart. Tribal Council member Cheryle A. Kennedy gave the invocation in which she included a special prayer for young Saige Torres, who was seriously injured in a car-bicycle accident on Monday, Sept. 7. Election Administrator Penny DeLoe delivered the 2015 Tribal Council election results and said there had been a recount because of the closeness of the results. “We actually hand-counted more ballots this year than we ever have,” said DeLoe. She then ex- plained the process for hand counts. “We are never left alone with the ballots without the administrator in the room,” she said. DeLoe announced that Kennedy and Jon A. George were re-elected and that Brenda Tuomi was elect- ed to fill the seat being vacated by Tribal Council Secretary Toby McClary. When DeLoe finished briefing the membership on the election results, she turned over the floor to Tribal Elder Steve Bobb Sr., who briefed General Council on the latest hap- penings with the Veterans Special Event Board. Bobb introduced board members and the Color Guard, and talked about all the different events that board members have participated in this year. “This is a committed group of people that work hard and we have been to many, many events, and we always represent Grand Ronde in a very good fashion,” said Bobb. “I’m very proud of these guys.” Bobb then congratulated the new- ly elected Tribal Council members. He also ran for Tribal Council and finished fourth, two votes behind George. “I’ll always be here on the side- lines for you,” said Bobb. “I will al- ways contribute in any way I can.” Tribal Council Chairman Reyn Leno then moved to the Spirit Photo by Michelle Alaimo Spirit Mountain Casino General Manager Stan Dillon gives the membership an update on the casino during the General Council meeting held in the Tribal Community Center on Sunday, Sept. 13. Mountain Casino report and said that it would be a general report and that the General Council would not go into executive session. Leno said there would be a fi- nancial report at the next General Council meeting and that that meeting would be exclusive to Tribal members only and would be conducted in executive session throughout its duration. “I’ve talked with council and this meeting will be open to Trib- al members and Tribal members only,” said Leno. “We will update the membership on where we are on a lot of financial issues.” Dillon reported that he lost the “interim” general manager status last September and that he is the casino general manager. Dillon introduced the casino’s Marketing Director Shawna Ridge- bear, who has been on board since April. Ridgebear is a member of the Shoshone Tribe. Dillon said that Ridgebear came to Spirit Mountain after spending 15 years working at Circus Circus, where she was also director of marketing. Dillon said that although the job Invitation to Bid General Contractor Services The Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde Tilixam Circle Paint Preparation Project The Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde hereby extends an In- vitation to General Contractors to bid on the Tilixam Circle Paint Preparation Project in Grand Ronde, Oregon. The project includes the preparation of the 36 residential units and 15 carports for exterior painting, which includes repairing various damage and weathering of the buildings. Mandatory Pre-Bid Meeting: Thursday, Sept. 24, 2015, at 3 p.m. Bids due: 3 p.m. local time, Wednesday, Oct. 7, 2015. Bid documents, including contract terms, conditions, and specifica- tions will be available beginning Sept. 16, 2015. Contact Jesse White, CTGR Engineering & Public Works Manager, for bid documents and project questions at 503-879-2404 or jesse.white@grandronde.org. market has increased, wages have not. He said rising food costs have hurt low-end players who visit the casino – Dillon said those are the players that on average spend about $20 per visit. Dillon said that guests who live more than 75 miles from the casino are visiting the property less often, but spending more money on each visit. Dillon also said that the casino’s biggest competitor continues to be the Oregon Lottery. “They have increased their ad- vertising and their television com- mercials,” said Dillon. “They have over 12,000 machines and they are probably the biggest slot operator in the country, and they are spend- ing $250 million to replace all their machines.” Dillon said the new Oregon Lot- tery machines look and act like the machines at Spirit Mountain and that they hold 12 games each. He also said the casino has lost three slot technicians in recent months to the Oregon Lottery. Dillon said his team is always keeping an eye on possible new competition and that they want to be proactive and not reactive. He said one of the ways they are doing that is to focus on guest loyalty programs that reward the most frequent players. Dillon said marketing efforts are paying off, especially with players from the Vancouver, Wash., area. He said those visits are up. Dillon said that he is happy to report that revenue is up in the first seven months of 2015 over the estimated budget and that reve- nues are also ahead of last year’s numbers. “The casino has managed its ex- penses effectively in order to pay higher dividends to the Tribe,” said Dillon. Dillon said his team has been preparing since May for the casino’s 20-year anniversary in October and that they are bringing in country singer Martina McBride for the special event. He said her show is already sold out. “We wanted somebody special,” said Dillon. Dillon explained to the General Council that the top players – the platinum players – drive the most revenue for the casino and they are doing targeted marketing as a way to retain those players. Dillon said his team also is de- veloping new “Get Into the Spirit” television commercials for 2016 as part of a re-branding effort. Dillon also updated General Council on the new improvements that were completed this summer at the casino. He said all projects, like the new exterior paint and the kitchen remodel, came in under budget and were completed on time. Leno then congratulated the recently elected Tribal Council members and thanked Tribal Coun- cil Chief of Staff Stacia Martin and Public Affairs Administrative Assistant Chelsea Clark for their hard work at recent public events, including the Tillikum Crossing event held on Saturday, Sept. 12. “I think we had very good repre- sentation up there,” said Leno. “It really shows when we are putting something on here or someplace else we have some great staff.” Outgoing Tribal Council member Toby McClary used his last General Council meeting to thank the mem- bership for believing in him during his six years on council. “Thank you for putting your trust and confidence in me. It has been an honor to serve you in this capacity,” said McClary. “These have been some of the most memorable years of my life and I will always hold on to these memories and cherish them.” McClary also thanked Tribal staff for all their efforts during his time on Tribal Council. “I want to acknowledge the staff,” said McClary. “They do all the hard work. They help prepare us to make the best decisions for the member- ship. I just want to raise my hands to the staff.” McClary also thanked his friends and family for all their support and he had a message for the member- ship as well. “Please be kind to one another,” said McClary. “Hayu masi. It’s been a good ride.” The membership present gave McClary a standing ovation. Miguel Adams won the $100 door prize and Wink Soderberg, Nina Portwood Shields and Brent Merrill won $50 door prizes. In addition, Dorothy Shortt and Linda LaChance won the Elders’ 50/50 drawings and Deanna John- son and Bob Duncan won beaded necklaces made by Tribal Council member Jon A. George. The next General Council meet- ing will be held at 11 a.m. Sunday, Oct. 4, in the Community Center. To watch the video of this Gener- al Council meeting in its entirety, visit the Tribal website at www. grandronde.org, click on the News tab and then go to Videos. n