Lake of the Ozarks Casino Resort From Osage Nation Unveiled in Missouri
Posted on: August 6, 2025, 02:46h.
Last updated on: August 6, 2025, 02:55h.
- The Osage Nation has unveiled a rendering for its Missouri casino
- The tribal property would include only Class I and II gaming — not slots or table games
Missouri’s first tribal casino by way of Lake of the Ozarks is moving closer to reality after the Osage Nation this week unveiled renderings of what it has in mind for the resort.
In part of its federal review with the Department of the Interior’s Bureau of Indian Affairs, the Osage Nation Draft Environmental Assessment (EA) has been made public. The review has been prepared for the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) in connection with the tribe’s application to have its approximately 29 acres of land within the City of Lake Ozark taken into the federal trust.
For that to happen, the federal agency tasked with enhancing the quality of life and promoting economic opportunities for sovereign tribes must determine that the Osage Nation’s plans won’t negatively impact the surrounding community. A component of that review is evaluating how the proposed development would impact the nearby environment.
The tribe’s EA includes the first renderings of what the Osage Nation hopes to build along Osage Beach Parkway between Horseshoe Bend Parkway and Bagnall Dam Boulevard.
Class II Casino
Missouri has never entered into a Class III gaming compact, as the state is not home to any federally recognized tribes. The Osage Nation is headquartered in Oklahoma in Pawhuska, roughly 60 miles northwest of Tulsa.
The Osage, however, claim historical ties to Missouri by way of Lake Ozark. The Interior Department has agreed with those claims, paving the way for the 29 acres of Osage land to be deemed sovereign pending the EA outcome.
With Missouri unlikely to allow traditional slot machines and live-dealer table games for the tribe, the Osage Lake Ozarks casino proposal includes only Class I and II gaming as defined by the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act (IGRA). Class II gaming includes bingo, and gaming manufacturers have gotten creative in developing electronic bingo terminals that closely mimic slots.
The Osage Nation’s preferred plan is to construct a 40K-square-foot casino accompanied by a 150-room hotel. The property would include five bars and restaurants, a fitness room, an outdoor pool and spa deck, 8,000 square feet of convention space, and 435 parking spaces.
The EA draft suggests the project would have no higher impact on the region than similar developments in the area. Missouri voters last year voted against a statewide referendum that would have allowed Bally’s Corp. to build a casino near the Lake of the Ozarks sign.
Tribal Casinos
Tribal casinos without Las Vegas slots and live-dealer table games are still popular with many gamblers. In Alabama, a state without commercial casinos or tribal Class III gaming compacts, the Poach Band of Creek Indians owns and operates three electronic bingo properties under the Wind Creek brand.
Tribal casinos are regulated by the National Indian Gaming Commission (NIGC). Tribal casinos generated a record $43.9 billion in gross gaming revenue during the federal government’s 2024 fiscal year. It marked the fourth consecutive year of record GGR growth.
Tribal casinos are considered lifelines for many sovereign Indian communities. Their revenue provides for essential services, including infrastructure, health care, and economic development. As such, tribal casinos play a key role in tribal self-sufficiency and sustainability.
The Osage Nation owns and operates seven casinos within its Oklahoma reservation.
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