Four Winds Hartford Casino
Hartford, Michigan
The Project
The Pokagon Band of Potawatomi Indians engaged HBG to design this first brand expansion of its Four Winds Casino. Serving as a satellite casino to its sister property 40 minutes away in New Buffalo, Michigan, the new Hartford casino integrates tribal cultural references and symbolism to achieve continuity of the Four Winds brand. The property was completed in budget and on schedule, 14 months from design start to construction end.
Integration of Pokagon culture and the Four Winds Casino brand was most important to the Four Winds Hartford Casino design. The HBG design weaves cultural elements throughout the casino interior and exterior in a subtle representation of the Pokagon Potawatomi Tribe.
Materials such as stone, copper and red cedar are used to detail the exterior façade of the gaming facility. A fifty-foot-tall stone chimney sits adjacent to the three-lane porte cochere, acting as a landmark for casino guests. The tall icon feature helps to promote the Four Winds brand, as well as signify the tribe’s cultural identity as the “keepers of the fire”.
Photography by Peter Malinowski
LocationHartford, Michigan Total Size52,000 SF; Multi phase master plan, 500 gaming machines, 9 table games, 100-seat restaurant, 12-seat bar, retail storeTotal Cost $40 MillionClientPokagon Band of Potawatomi Indians