Texas Tribe Plans Major Naskila Casino Resort in East Texas

LEGGETT, Texas: The Alabama-Coushatta Tribe of Texas is moving ahead with a major casino resort project in East Texas.

The planned Naskila Casino Resort would expand the tribe’s gaming footprint with a hotel, event space, dining options and thousands of electronic bingo machines.

The tribe and Naskila Casino broke ground on the future resort in June, marking the next phase of growth for the tribal gaming operation. The project is planned for tribal land in Leggett, north of Houston, and is expected to open its first phase in late 2028.

Resort Planned on Tribal Land

The Naskila Casino Resort announcement said the development will span 95 acres on Alabama-Coushatta Tribal land. When completed, the resort is expected to cover about 685,000 square feet.

The first phase is set to include about 3,400 electronic bingo machines, smoking and non-smoking gaming areas, high-limit VIP casino space, restaurants, bars, lounges and food hall concepts. Plans also include a 366-room hotel and a resort-style pool complex.

The event and conference component is expected to include about 35,000 square feet of flexible space. That includes a grand ballroom designed to accommodate 1,000 guests and attract conferences, special events and group gatherings from across the region.

The project is being developed in phases, with additional amenities expected to be announced as the resort grows. Tribal officials have framed the development as a long-term economic investment for the tribe and surrounding East Texas communities.

Project Builds on Earlier Casino Plan

The resort plan follows the tribe’s earlier move to make a Texas town home to a new tribal casino, expanding gaming activity beyond the existing Naskila Casino operation in Livingston. The Leggett site is now positioned as the future home of the larger resort project.

Design work is being led by JCJ Architecture, while Yates Construction is leading construction. Naskila said the project team brings experience in gaming, hospitality and entertainment development.

The tribe opened Naskila Casino in Livingston in 2016. Naskila said the existing casino and Ischoopa Travel Center support more than 1,000 permanent local jobs and generate an annual economic impact of $251.7 million, citing a study commissioned by the Texas Forest Country Partnership.

As part of the expansion, Naskila also plans to open Naskila Casino Leggett, a temporary gaming facility on the future resort site. That facility is expected to operate 24 hours a day and include 300 electronic bingo machines, smoking and non-smoking areas, dining and players club access.

Texas Gaming Limits Remain

The project advances in a state that still has some of the strictest gambling restrictions in the United States. Texas does not allow commercial casinos, and tribal gaming in the state remains limited compared with full Las Vegas-style casino resorts.

The Alabama-Coushatta Tribe is among the federally recognized tribes in Texas that operate gaming facilities using electronic bingo machines. Those machines can resemble slot-style gaming, but the tribe is not offering full Las Vegas-style table games such as blackjack, poker or roulette.

The legal landscape changed after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in 2022 that Texas could not enforce state gaming restrictions against the Alabama-Coushatta Tribe and the Ysleta del Sur Pueblo in the same way it had argued. That decision strengthened the tribes’ ability to offer bingo-based gaming under federal oversight.

For the Alabama-Coushatta Tribe, the planned resort represents a major step in expanding a regulated tribal gaming business in a difficult state market. For Texas, it shows how tribal gaming can grow even while broader commercial casino legalization remains stalled.

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