NEW BUFFALO TWP. - A new hotel and casino are blowing into the extreme southwest corner of the state, in the form of the Four Winds Casino Resort, which is currently under construction.

The Pokagon Band of Potawatomi Indians is sponsoring the construction project, which has put some 500 Hardhats to work at peak employment. Building trades workers on the job hail from Michigan, Indiana and even Chicago - the same areas that the casino and connected hotel hope to draw from when the gaming begins in August.

"It's astonishing to see the level of craftsmanship on this project," said John Miller, tribal chairman and president and CEO of the Four Winds Casino Resort. "It's the first time that I've had the experience of working with union labor, and the skill of the workers is obvious. They're really doing a nice job."

Located on a mixture of former cornfield as well as a wooded, 675-acre site near I-94, Phase 1 of the construction includes a 225,000 square-foot casino and 165-room, six-story, all-suites hotel and parking structure. A small conference area and seven different areas for "eating opportunities" including cafeterias and restaurants will be on site, Miller said.

Future expansion, depending on "how the market develops," would include an addition atop the existing hotel and expanded gaming and conference space, Miller added. Currently only 51 acres of the site are being developed.

Ground was broken on June 3. The project is being managed by a joint venture of Christman-Kraus -Anderson. A project labor agreement covers the construction process, which includes the hiring of several tribal members as building trades apprentices. "This is a very, very fast job," said Roger Prince, general foreman for Metro Pipe, Inc. "For the area, it's also a big job, and from start to finish, you really get a sample of every phase of construction. It's been a great project for us."

The casino and hotel will have a "north woods lodge feel," the tribe says, built with elements like heavy logs, cedar and stone. The casino will include 3,000 slot machines, 90 table games and 20 poker tables.

Leaders of the Pokagon Band of Potawatomi studied the design of a number of casinos and worked with the Urban Design Group to make their plans to come life. They had some time to prepare: legal hurdles delayed the start of the project for much of this decade. Miller said it was important to the tribe to get the community involved, with local hiring for construction and local hiring when the casino and hotel start to operate. The casino and hotel are expected to create about 2,000 jobs and draw more than four million visitors a year to the New Buffalo area.

"We don't get a lot of big projects down in this area, and we want to do it right," said Gary Gunberg, business manager of Plumbers, Pipe Fitters and HVAC Service Local 357. "The tribe has studied the market, they know what they want, and they have been very involved in the construction process. We've enjoyed working with them."

THE FOUR WINDS CASINO, under construction in New Buffalo, includes a gaming space with the grand entrance in the foreground and a hotel in the background.

ACCESSING A STORM drain cleanout at the Four Winds Casino is Ron Flagel of Plumbers, Pipe Fitters and HVAC Service Local 357, working for Metro Piping.