She said the passage connecting the existing ilani building to the hotel is a “tunnel of time.” The corridor features hand-selected items from the tribe’s collection of historical artifacts and items created specifically for the space, a release from ilani stated. “Now we have moved our new site into the skies,” Engdahl said. In earlier times, when a village grew large, some families would make their way to a new site to live. Almost two years prior to the day, many of the same people gathered for the official groundbreaking on what would become the nearly 300-room, 14-story building.Ĭowlitz Spiritual Leader Tanna Engdahl said the hotel is an extension of the tribe’s community upward. Rick Bannan / once-empty tower of blue glass off of Interstate 5 is now officially occupied after the Cowlitz Indian Tribe celebrated the opening of the ilani Hotel on Monday, April 24.Īmid a crowd of tribal members and those involved with the project, dignitaries cut the ribbon in front of a 130-foot corridor that connects the existing casino floor to the hotel.
