Chewelah’s economy is about to be boosted by the Spokane Tribe’s new hotel

October 5, 2021 6:27 PM

Elenee Dao,

Posted: October 5, 2021 6:27 PM

Updated: October 5, 2021 9:21 PM

by Elenee Dao

CHEWELAH, Wash. – If you’re looking to enjoy the outdoors or go skiing up at 49 Degrees North, there will soon be a new hotel for you to stay in.

The Spokane Tribe celebrated the start of the Mistequa Hotel. It will be right in front of the Chewelah Casino.

Tribal members and the town of Chewelah waited for years for this day to come. They wanted to start the hotel in 2005, but finally made the first move to build the hotel on Tuesday.

“Just with recession, pandemic and prices and shipments of goods needed to build this, there were many challenges and hurdles the Spokane Tribe overcame to make this become a reality today,” said Jamie Sijohn, the Chewelah Casino marketing manager and Spokane Tribe member.

Money made at Spokane Tribe casinos and soon-to-be hotel will help fund its programs for kids and elders.

It will also bring in more jobs to the small town.

“It’s things that you don’t see with construction but beyond construction, there will programs that will be funded by this project,” said Sijohn.

The hotel is a dream for many finally coming true. That includes the Chewelah mayor, Dorothy Knauss, who says they need more places for people to stay in their small town.

“This will allow us to have stay-and-play packages. Coordination between the golf course, the ski hill and the casino, hotel to keep people here,” Knauss continued. “They’ll come into our stores, they’ll come into our restaurants. It’s a huge boost to our economy as well as jobs for people.”

They hope to have the hotel done and ready for families in about a year.

After that project, Sijohn says they plan to build a new hotel. More details will be released later by the Spokane Tribe.

For more information on the new hotel or job opportunities, visit the website.