A tribal casino near Eaglecrest Ski Area that’s been discussed for many years is open, but its operator is taking something of a gamble by hoping it can prevail if the state challenges the legality of the establishment.

A “soft opening” of the Two Coppers Casino began this week, with the facility featuring 100 slot-style electronic machines (one of which wasn’t functioning), said Chalyee Éesh Richard Peterson, president of the Central Council of the Tlingit and Haida Indian Tribes of Alaska, in an interview shortly after the casino opened at 2 p.m. Wednesday. Construction is still ongoing and some amenities such as running water are lacking, so the target official grand opening date is July 1.

“We’re really excited about this,” he said. “It’s an opportunity, an expression of our sovereignty, but also I think it’s a great economic opportunity for not only the tribe, but for people who want to work here.”

The casino is scheduled to be open until 9 p.m. Wednesday and at times to be determined in the coming days leading up to the official opening, with the regular operating hours still being determined, Peterson said. A shuttle to the casino that circulates via downtown, since cruise passengers are envisioned as a major portion of the customers, is set to begin operating this week.

Peterson also acknowledged concerns (and stigmas) some people have raised about casinos, and noted that for now alcohol isn’t being served and “we’re going to have some really strict guidelines that if we see people that are probably spending too much time here, they’re going to be asked not to.”

A more existential issue is the casino’s legal status, which was put into doubt last September. The Trump administration reversed a Biden-era ruling by the U.S. Department of the Interior cited by the National Indian Gaming Commission (NIGC) when it authorized an amended gaming ordinance adopted by the tribe in October of 2024.

Peterson said even without that ruling it appears a previously approved ordinance for the casino appears to be legally valid. However, the Trump administration’s reversal was prompted by a similar gaming facility the Native Village of Eklutna opened in January of 2025, with the state of Alaska filing a lawsuit in February of that year to shut down the casino. But that facility continues to operate and Peterson said he believes his tribe will prevail if a similar challenge is filed against Two Coppers Casino.

“I feel fairly secure,” he said. “If they challenge it that’s their choice. That doesn’t mean I agree that they have a legal ground to stand on and that they’ll win.”

Sam Curtis, a spokesperson for the Alaska Department of Law, stated in an email Wednesday afternoon “the State of Alaska is aware of the Two Coopers Casino opening and is closely monitoring the situation.”

“The U.S. Department of Interior has recently reversed a legal opinion issued by the Biden Administration that had been used to authorize tribal gaming in Alaska, directing all relevant federal agencies to follow a legal opinion that had been (in) place since 1993 and to revisit any gaming-related decisions made under that Biden-era opinion,” he wrote. “The State is deferring to the federal government as that review process plays out.”

Two Coppers Casino is a Class II gaming establishment, which can offer slot-like machines where payouts come from a pool of competing players (much like bingo), non-house-banked card games, bingo and pull-tabs. Games like poker, blackjack and traditional slot machines are not allowed.

The machines were somewhat unfamiliar to a handful of initial gamblers who visited the casino when it opened Wednesday afternoon.

“Just put money in and watch it spin,” said Deborah Picken, a Hoonah resident sitting next to her uncle, Herman Davis, a Sitka resident, at one row of machines. She said the visit to the casino was sparked by family members taking Davis to Las Vegas last year because that was one of the items on his bucket list.

“He ended up winning $800 by the time we left Las Vegas,” she said. “When he heard about this from my daughter last night he got excited and said ‘I want to check it out,’ so here we are.”

Annette Ulmer, a Juneau resident who said she has gambled in numerous tribal casinos elsewhere, said the new establishment compares favorably to those.

“I love it. I think it’s something that’s been needed for a while,” she said.

The casino is on a 220-acre site about a mile from Eaglecrest that is owned by the heirs of an Angoon man who obtained it in a land swap with the U.S. Forest Service in 2002. Tlingit and Haida has been leasing 20 of those acres since 2015.

Speculation has existed for many years about the site on Fish Creek Road about four miles from the Glacier Highway turnoff to Eaglecrest. A 2016 blog post by journalist Craig Medred headlined “Alaska’s first Indian gambling casino appears to be in the works” stated Tlingit and Haida had adopted a federal gaming ordinance, but denied “it has any plan to build a casino in Juneau at this time.”

But Tlingit and Haida began clearing trees from the land in 2018 for purposes tribal officials did not elaborate on publicly. Fireworks sales leading up to the Fourth of July occurred on the property during some subsequent years, with gaming establishment plans confirmed when construction began at the site last summer.

This story was originally published by the Juneau Independent.