_{Thumbnail photo: Elk Valley Rancheria tribal building. | Photo courtesy of Andrew Goff}

Crescent City councilors took a first step Monday toward helping Elk Valley Rancheria build its new four-story 93-room hotel.

It’s a project the tribal nation has been working on since the early 2000s when it took the Martin Ranch through the fee-to-trust process, Elk Valley Rancheria CEO Crista Stewart told Redwood Voice Community News on Wednesday. Ground breaking is expected to take place in about a month, she said.

“It’s going to be really rustic,” Stewart said. “We’ll have a beautiful one-story lobby with open ceilings that’ll open up into a beautiful backyard patio with a fire pit overlooking the ocean. We’re also going to have two areas for meetings. (There) will be a smaller board-room style room for smaller meetings and we’ll also have a larger meeting event room for guests up to 100 for weddings and trainings and conferences.”

The hotel will be immediately adjacent to the casino, Stewart said. It will be connected to the casino via a hallway, but it will have its own entrance and porte cocheré.

The Crescent City Council on Monday approved a task order with Stover Engineering to conduct an analysis of the Bertsch-Oceanview water system. The analysis will determine the water consumption demand for the new hotel and how it will impact the Bertsch-Oceanview system, according to City Manager Eric Wier.

The City Council also approved a budget adjustment ahead of an expected agreement with Elk Valley Rancheria to reimburse Crescent City for the cost of the analysis. According to Wier’s staff report, the cost will not exceed $16,500.

Councilor Ray Altman was absent.

The analysis will be similar to one conducted in 2022 ahead of Elk Valley Rancheria opening its new casino and fuel mart. According to Wier’s staff report, a 12-inch line connects the casino to the Bertsch-Oceanview Community Services District’s water main at Darby Street and Roy Avenue.

“When we talk about this particular property, it’s not within the Bertsch-Oceanview CSD boundaries and so it’s a process called wheeling the water,” Wier told councilors. “The water still goes through (the CSD’s) system, so you’re not building redundant infrastructure with all these dual lines that come around. “

The analysis will determine if there is enough water capacity within the Bertsch-Oceanview CSD system, which gets its water from the city, for it to provide water to an area outside of its boundaries, according to Wier.

“You can wheel up to 70% of the available capacity, always leaving some there for the needs of that particular system,” he said.

The analysis would take into consideration the current demand on the Bertsch-Oceanview CSD’s system. Wier said that has changed slightly from when the casino was built. It would also determine if the system can serve the new hotel.

“This would be the first step in this next phase,” Wier said of the hotel. “When the development was talked about it was talked about being done in stages and phases. The first phase was the fuel mart and casino.”

When Councilor Steve Shamblin asked if Elk Valley Rancheria had a plan B if the water system can’t serve a new hotel, Wier said the analysis would determine if the tribe would need to seek another option.

According to the city manager, the biggest limitation he sees currently is the pump station on Elk Valley Road, which could use improvements. Increasing the pump size would increase the system’s capacity, he said.

Elk Valley Rancheria could also install a water tank on its site if the current system doesn’t have the capacity it needs, Wier said.

On Wednesday, Stewart said Elk Valley Rancheria’s legal counsel was working with Crescent City on the water capacity analysis.

According to Stewart, an environmental review focusing on the development of a resort was part of the process when Elk Valley Rancheria brought the Martin Ranch from fee into trust. At that time, the proposed resort also included a golf course, she said.

The new hotel is expected to open anywhere from October to December 2027, Stewart said.

“This is definitely going to be a win for the whole community, not just Elk Valley Rancheria,” she said. “This will definitely turn the Martin Ranch into Elk Valley Resort and it’ll bring a lot of tourists into Del Norte County to stay and visit.”