Comanche Red River Hotel Casino Opens Oasis at The Red

Comanche Red River Hotel Casino opened its pool, Oasis at The Red, on Friday, September 19, in Devol, Oklahoma.

The space is complete with various amenities, including two pools, cabanas, a pickleball court, a bar, hammocks and cornhole.

Comanche Red River General Manager Sterling Ticeahkie, who is also the general manager of Comanche Star Casino, said there will be additions to the current space.

“We have fountains coming, and it's just going to enhance the experience,” he said. “You can go sit by the fountains. We've even discussed maybe fire pits by the TVs in the front, just so you can enjoy yourself even more.”

Ticeahkie said there were trials and tribulations throughout the project.

“In the beginning, it was weather, and then we had a whole new crew come in for the construction crew, and when they came in, they hit the ground running,” he said. “And it just inspired everybody, and every day it's like something new. Employees would come to the doors and look out and say, ‘Oh, they're up to this point now.’ So, it was exciting for all of us.”

Ticeahkie said the space is open for hotel guests, which was the driving factor of the project.

“You'll be able to experience everything we have out here,” he said. “The cabanas, those will be for rent. Of course, you go to the hotel desk, they can rent there and we'll have employees at the bar that you can basically go to them and ask, and they should be able to facilitate anything you need. The goal was to enhance your experience here. We want to give you something that no one else can offer, and I think we did just that.”

Ticeahkie said their end goal is to have every amenity available for those who visit.

His favorite part is cornhole.

“I love playing cornhole. I'm not any good, but I enjoy playing,” Ticeahkie said. “Sometimes, when people beat you, it makes them feel that much better. So, I let them beat me, but I enjoy playing.”

Comanche Nation Business Committee Members, Chairman Forrest Tahdooahnippah and Tribal Administrator Lisa Dawsey, were in Attendance.

Tahdooahnippah said it felt great to be at the ribbon-cutting and see the new space.

“There's a lot of excitement in the air,” he said. “People recognize the potential for this to really benefit our property, benefit our customers and by benefiting our customers, and of course, benefiting the whole Comanche Nation and all of our tribal members.”

Tahdooahnippah said he wants to facilitate some of the projects that need to be completed.

“A lot of what I've been trying to do as the chairman is just facilitate things that have already been planned,” he said. “I don't think that I have a lot of great original ideas, although I have some, but the way that tribal government works, things go so slow that the great ideas that I've had will probably be something that happen in 10 years. So, what I've been trying to focus on is just making sure we finish what we put our minds to. There's always plans that happen, and then sometimes they get put on the shelf. So, what I've been really trying to do is just push things forward. So, this was always designed to house a pool, and so it was a matter of kind of dusting off the old plans, updating them for something that was a modern concept and then making sure we had the money to do it, which we eventually found and then just seeing it through with accountability for the contractors, the workers, everyone else. So, it feels great to finally have it done.”

Tahdooahnippah said the hotel services a wide area of visitors.

“Where we are located, it's a great location for kind of a destination,” he said. “You know, we are near the Texas border. We're kind of in between Wichita Falls and Lawton. We're just a couple hours away from Dallas. So, this is not the type of facility where you're going to get a ton of people coming from around the corner because around the corner is just, you know, cattle grazing. But you're going to a lot of people that want to come for a vacation to enjoy the area, to get away from wherever they're coming from, to relax, to have fun. And so, by offering things just besides the gaming floor, we can make it something that's fun for a longer stay and fun for a family too, you know, where you could come and you can bring your kids, and they can enjoy this while the adults enjoy the gaming floor.”

There was a VIP party later in the evening to experience the new space.