CUBA — Independence Day weekend celebrations won’t be the only crowd-drawing activity at Cuba Lake this July.
Seneca Gaming and Entertainment announced Tuesday, during its job fair for its new Class II gaming facility opening in Cuba, it plans to start operations at the site July 4 weekend.
Judy Farmer, an administrator for the facility, said 27 full-time and 12 part-time positions will be filled within the next month so employees can begin their training to work at the latest tribe-owned gaming facility.
“Seneca Gaming is very happy to be here to offer these new job opportunities for the residents … to welcome them as members of the Seneca Nation family,” she said. “These positions come with a lot of opportunity and advancement …We’re bringing life to this area.”
“The Seneca Gaming Corporation is very successful in what they do,” said SNI President Barry E. Snyder Sr. as he welcomed applicants to the event. “We’re elated to be down here in the Oil Spring Territory. It’s exciting. We know this will be a very successful operation here.”
This fourth facility will join the Seneca Nation’s Niagara Falls, Buffalo and Salamanca locations. It’s progress, the president said, that had a lot to do with the people that are employed in the facilities.
“We have respect for all of our employees. They become part of our Seneca family,” he added. “We’re good, good people to work for. We work together as a family.”
Site general manager Lee Milks, who has been working in the gaming industry for more than a decade, told the Times Herald he was excited about the opportunity to oversee operations at the facility.
“I love gaming, and this is a really great opportunity for the Nation and the community,” he said. “I can’t wait to get started.”
Rodney Pierce, Seneca Nation treasurer, said he couldn’t be more pleased with the location for the new facility, and he anticipates expanding after the Nation sees how the area responds to the initial facility.
The site sits on the Oil Springs Territory, a one-square-mile area on the southwest shore of Cuba Lake. The under-construction building will neighbor the Seneca One Stop store on North Cuba Lake Road. Seneca Construction Management Corporation began construction of the 90-by-50-foot building in March.
“This is kind of a pilot project for the gaming operations here, but once this kicks off, and we see the revenues, there will be additional opportunities here for each and every one of you in the area,” Mr. Pierce told the job seekers. “This is just a start for us. I think we can look forward to expansion here in the very near future.”
Morris Abrams, co-chair of the Nation’s board of directors, told the Times Herald he envisions first-class restaurants and hotels being built near the site. He encouraged developers to investigate the area for these types of opportunities, adding he welcomes everyone to benefit from the tribe’s efforts to bring economic growth to the area.
“It’s an easier location for those traveling from the east to get to, so those individuals who attend from that area will help it grow,” he said, adding he doesn’t see it competing with the Salamanca casino located seven exits away on Interstate 86. “And it will also give the people who live around and visit Cuba Lake something else to do.”
Cuba Town Supervisor Barbara Deming, who was unable to attend Tuesday’s function, told the Times Herald she welcomes the employment opportunities this new business will provide to the area.
“We really need jobs in this community. It’s because of those 40 new employment opportunities, that I’m all in favor of it,” she said. “If this works out as well as the Seneca Nation hopes it will, this could be a big boom for our area in reducing our unemployment.”
She added there are plans for her and other town officials to meet with the tribal council in the future to discuss financial assistance from the Nation for the town since the area’s police department and ambulance will supply the law enforcement and other emergency services to the new facility.
“Nothing is definite yet, but they seem willing to help the area and give us what we need to assist them,” said the supervisor. “Everything seems favorable … they are meeting the needs of the community.”
