VERONA, N.Y. — The Oneida Indian Nation on Wednesday said the massive Turning Stone Evolution expansion project is progressing ahead of schedule with the Crescent Hotel and Salt Seafood & Raw Bar now expected to debut next summer on June 29, 2026.
And the Grand Expo will open shortly after on Labor Day 2026. The Turning Stone Evolution, a $370 million investment, was initially anticipated to open in 2027.
The Turning Stone Evolution is described as the Oneida Indian Nation’s “largest ever reinvestment” into Turning Stone Resort Casino.
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The Oneida Indian Nation has partnered with architecture and design firm Gensler. General contractors for the project, the Hayner Hoyt Corporation of Syracuse and TN Ward Company, Builders of Ardmore, Pennsylvania have overseen a vast network of subcontractors throughout construction to keep the project effort ahead of schedule.
“The Turning Stone Evolution is a transformational investment in bringing new people to Upstate New York and giving them reasons to return,” Ray Halbritter, Oneida Indian Nation representative and Turning Stone Enterprises CEO, said in the announcement. “Everything the Evolution is creating will allow us to compete with some of the top tourism and events markets in the country — destinations like New York City, Chicago, Orlando, and more — and demonstrate what we have always known about Upstate New York: that we have everything these destinations offer and more.”
Project elements
The expansion includes the Crescent Hotel, which includes 258 new guest rooms and suites to accommodate guests for business and leisure travel. The hotel will offer a dedicated entrance and check-in, as well as indoor connectivity to The Grand Expo, restaurants, the Event Center, the Showroom, and the gaming floor.
Booking for the Crescent Hotel will begin in early 2026, per the announcement.
The new hotel will be home to a new restaurant called Salt Seafood & Raw Bar. In addition to a main dining area and raw bar, the restaurant also has private dining rooms with heated terraces.
The Turning Stone Evolution also includes a new 1,600-space parking garage, doubling existing indoor-parking capacity at the resort, and an on-site medical center that will serve Turning Stone employees, their families, and resort guests.
When The Grand Expo opens in early September, it will expand Turning Stone’s conference and event spaces to 200,000 square feet of modern meeting rooms, making it New York’s largest meetings and conventions resort, the Oneida Indian Nation contends.
The Grand Expo will be home to two ballrooms, including the Grand Ballroom, an elevated space that may be configured in numerous ways and that includes an outdoor terrace that can accommodate close to 2,000 guests.
Among the outdoor spaces created by the Turning Stone Evolution, a new 25,000-square-foot courtyard will be situated at the center of the Grand Expo’s meeting rooms.
