The Jamestown S’Klallam Tribe and community celebrated and blessed the tribe’s new hotel in Blyn with songs, speeches and a ribbon-cutting on Aug. 4.

The $40 million, five-story 7 Cedars Hotel — Phase 1 of a 20-year development effort — is attached to the casino to allow that seamless transition from private room to gaming table common to major gaming establishments.

“It’s been a long time coming and we’re very excited,” tribal chairman/CEO W. Ron Allen said Tuesday.

7 Cedars Casino CEO Jerry Allen said the opening was 25 years, six months to the day of the casino’s opening.

Tribal elder Elaine Grinnell said the tribe has been working on the hotel project for about as long.

“I can’t help but get a little emotional about this,” she said. “It may have taken us a bit longer, but we’re here.”

Art featured in the 100-room hotel is by Coast Salish artists and Pacific Northwest photographers. Custom-made carpet was designed to reiterate themes of water, land, trees and sky, said Judy Walz, marketing director of 7 Cedars Resort Properties.

Phase 1 includes the Jamestown Java coffee shop, a 220-seat conference area, and a 5-acre parking lot.

Phase 2, which has no timeline yet, would include 150-200 more rooms and added conference space and parking. Longer-term plans could include a spa and pool.

See more photos of the event here: www.flickr.com/photos/119537964@N04/albums/72157715362721403.

Tribal elder Elaine Grinnell, left, and her granddaughter, tribal council member Loni Greninger, sing a paddling song at the grand opening/ribbon-cutting of the Jamestown S’Klallam Tribe’s 7 Cedars Hotel on Aug. 4. Sequim Gazette photo by Michael Dashiell