NORTH CAROLINA GAMING
North Carolina's Tribal Casino Future Splits in Two: Catawba Expands as Lumbee Reconsider Gaming
The Catawba Nation is moving ahead with a larger casino strategy even as the Lumbee Tribe's voters rejected a constitutional amendment tied to gaming. But the Lumbee story did not end with that vote.
KINGS MOUNTAIN, N.C. - North Carolina's emerging tribal casino industry is taking two very different paths.
The Catawba Nation is treating casino gaming as a long-term economic development strategy. After opening the first phase of its perm
About 100 miles to the east, the Lumbee Tribe appeared to be heading in the opposite direction after its citizens voted in June against a constitutional amendment that would have given tribal leaders a clearer framework for pursuing gaming.
But the Lumbee story has since become more complicated - and potentially more consequential.
Rather than abandoning gaming altogether, Lumbee leaders have continued looking for a legal and governmental path forward. In late June, the Tribal Council directed its general counsel to explore legal avenues for pursuing hospitality and entertainment opportunities, including gaming. In August, the council designated "hospitality and entertainment, to include gaming" as an economic and community development priority. And in September, the tribe announced public hearings on a draft gaming ordinance.
That creates a more interesting question for North Carolina than whether either tribe simply wants a casino: What happens when one tribe is aggressively expanding its gaming footprint while another is trying to determine how - and under what rules - it should enter the industry?
Catawba is betting on expansion
The Catawba Nation's Two Kings project is already changing the state's casino map.
The first permanent phase opened in 2026 in Kings Mountain, west of Charlotte. The introductory casino includes 1,350 slot machines, electronic and live table games, a restaurant and bar, and sports-betting kiosks.
The larger Two Kings resort is expected to be completed in spring 2027. The planned resort includes a 24-story, 385-room hotel and an expanded gaming floor with about 4,300 slot machines and 100 live table games, along with restaurants, bars and other amenities.
Then came the bigger announcement. At the July 1 ribbon-cutting ceremony, Harris said the Catawba Nation has two additional casino projects planned in North Carolina. He said sites have been identified and negotiations are underway, but he did not disclose their locations.
That makes Two Kings more than a single casino project. It is the centerpiece of a broader Catawba strategy to use gaming and related development as an economic engine.
$3,000 Casino Welcome Bonus!The Lumbee vote was a setback - not necessarily an ending
The Lumbee Tribe's path has been far less straightforward.
After receiving full federal recognition in December 2025, the tribe acquired roughly 240 acres near Interstate 95 in Robeson County. Tribal leaders had discussed the property as a possible site for a major economic development project that could include a casino, hotels, entertainment and other attractions.
In June, however, Lumbee voters rejected a proposed constitutional amendment tied to gaming. About 62.6% voted against the measure, according to reported election results.
The vote was widely interpreted as a major setback for a proposed casino along the I-95 corridor. Chairman John Lowery said immediately afterward that he would not bring the issue forward again during the remainder of his term.
Yet subsequent actions by the Tribal Council suggest that the question is not settled.
On June 25, the council voted 17-1 to direct its general counsel to explore legal pathways that could allow the tribe to pursue hospitality and entertainment opportunities, including gaming. The tribe later listed an August 20 resolution designating hospitality and entertainment, including gaming, as an economic and community development priority.
Most recently, the tribe announced that public hearings on a draft gaming ordinance will begin in September, giving enrolled citizens an opportunity to comment on the proposed rules.
In other words, the Lumbee position is not simply "no casino." The June vote rejected one proposed route to gaming, while tribal leaders have continued exploring whether another route is legally and politically possible.
That may be the real North Carolina casino story
The contrast between the tribes highlights two very different questions facing Native nations in North Carolina.
For the Catawba, the central question is how far gaming can expand. The tribe has already committed to a billion-dollar-plus resort and publicly identified two more casino projects.
For the Lumbee, the central question is more fundamental: how should the tribe decide whether gaming belongs in its economic future, and who should have the authority to make that decision?
That distinction matters because casino development is not merely a business decision for a sovereign tribal government. It can affect governance, land use, employment, public services, relationships with surrounding communities and the distribution of tribal revenues.
The Lumbee debate also illustrates how tribal citizens can view the same economic opportunity differently from their elected leaders. Opponents of the June amendment said their objection was not necessarily to gaming itself, but to the wording of the proposed constitutional change and the authority it would have given tribal leadership.
That leaves the Lumbee Tribe in an unusual position: its citizens have rejected the latest gaming proposal, while its government continues to explore whether gaming can still be part of a broader hospitality and economic-development strategy.
A changing casino map
The stakes extend beyond the two tribes.
North Carolina already has major tribal casino operations run by the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians in the western part of the state. The Catawba expansion adds another major gaming destination in the Charlotte region. If the tribe follows through on two additional casinos, the state's tribal gaming market could become substantially more geographically diverse.
A Lumbee casino, if ultimately approved and legally established, would create another major gaming destination in southeastern North Carolina, potentially drawing customers from the I-95 corridor and neighboring states.
For now, however, the trajectories are different. The Catawba Nation is talking about its next two casinos while building out the first. The Lumbee Tribe is still debating the rules, authority and legal pathway that would govern a possible entry into gaming.
That contrast may define the next chapter of North Carolina tribal gaming.
One tribe is asking how many casinos it can build. The other is still asking how it should decide whether to build one.
