Originally planned to open in 2027, the Turning Stone Evolution will arrive ahead of schedule as The Crescent Hotel and Salt Seafood & Raw Bar make their debut on June 29, 2026 with the opening of The Grand Expo conference and event center to follow on Labor Day 2026.
The Oneida Indian Nation plans to hire 350 new team members beginning early next year to support the Turning Stone Evolution, adding new roles in hospitality, culinary, innovation, sales, environmental services, housekeeping and more.
Oneida Indian Nation Homelands (October 29, 2025) – The Turning Stone Evolution, the Oneida Indian Nation’s largest ever reinvestment into Turning Stone Resort Casino, will welcome guests ahead of schedule as The Crescent Hotel and Salt Seafood & Raw Bar make their debut next summer on June 29, 2026. The Grand Expo will open shortly after on Labor Day 2026. The Turning Stone Evolution was initially anticipated to open in 2027.
When The Grand Expo opens in early September, it will expand Turning Stone’s conference and event spaces to 200,000 sq. ft. of beautiful, modern meeting rooms, making it New York’s largest meetings and conventions resort.
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 boasts a dedicated outdoor terrace and a spacious design to accommodate close to 2,000 guests. Among the outdoor spaces created by the Turning Stone Evolution, a new 25,000 sq. ft. courtyard will be situated at the center of The Grand Expo’s meeting rooms and provide a lovely natural setting for celebrations, business receptions, weddings and much more.
This massive expansion includes The Crescent Hotel, which features a stunning exterior profile and 258 luxurious 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.
The new hotel will be home to Salt Seafood & Raw Bar, a spectacular new restaurant from the award-winning culinary team behind Turning Stone’s Forbes Four Star Award winning venues. The pinnacle of dining at Turning Stone and a dining experience that is unparalleled throughout the region, Salt Seafood & Raw Bar will redefine fine dining in Upstate New York with its incredible menu and sweeping views of the beautiful natural landscape from its location on The Crescent Hotel’s seventh floor. In addition to a main dining area and raw bar, the restaurant also boasts spacious private dining rooms with heated terraces for elegant three-season outdoor dining surrounded by the glittering night sky.
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 team members, their families and resort guests.
Booking for The Crescent Hotel will begin in early 2026, while reservations for groups and events at The Grand Expo are being accepted now.
Already one of the region’s largest workforces with more than 5,000 team members, Turning Stone Enterprises will be hiring for more than 350 positions to support the Turning Stone Evolution in 2026. New positions will include roles spanning a wide range of industries and sectors, including hospitality, culinary, sales, innovation, environmental services, housekeeping and many more.
“The Turning Stone Evolution is a transformational investment in bringing new people to Upstate New York and giving them reasons to return,” said Oneida Indian Nation Representative and Turning Stone Enterprises Chief Executive Officer Ray Halbritter. “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. ”
The Oneida Indian Nation has partnered with world-renowned architecture and design firm Gensler to bring its vision for the Turning Stone Evolution to life. General contractors for the project, The Hayner Hoyt Corporation and TN Ward Company, have overseen a vast network of subcontractors throughout construction to achieve the early arrival of The Grand Expo, The Crescent Hotel and Turning Stone’s new parking garage.
The Turning Stone Evolution represents a generational investment in the Oneida Indian Nation’s enterprises and Upstate New York. This $370 million capital investment will also generate a one-time economic impact exceeding $600 million and create more than 3,500 construction and related jobs. At the same time, the Evolution has dramatically increased vendor spending, with $263 million invested with New York State vendors and more than $161 million spent with businesses in Oneida, Madison and Onondaga Counties. Since the project began, the Oneida Indian Nation has issued 90 awards to subcontractors in support of the Turning Stone Evolution, including 60 awarded to New York State businesses.
These investments in the Turning Stone Evolution build upon the Oneida Indian Nation’s role as an engine for growth and economic development in Upstate New York. In 2022, an economic impact analysis conducted by Oxford Economics, one of the world’s leading global independent advisory firms, found that Turning Stone and the Nation’s other business operations generated a more than $1 billion economic impact within the region.
For more information about the Turning Stone Evolution, please visit turningstone.com.
About Turning Stone Enterprises
Turning Stone Enterprises is the parent organization for all business operations of the Oneida Indian Nation. One of the largest employers in Central New York with more than 5,000 team members, Turning Stone Enterprises’ portfolio of hospitality, gaming and recreational destinations includes Turning Stone Resort Casino, YBR Casino & Sports Book, Point Place Casino, The Lake House at Sylvan Beach, The Cove at Sylvan Beach, Maple Leaf Market and SavOn convenience stores, an RV park, two marinas, a hunting preserve and salmon-fishing destination and Wáhta’ Maple Farm. Collectively, these properties offer guests from across the region and around the world five award-winning hotels, nearly 30 signature restaurants and dining venues, two spas, five golf courses, Las Vegas-style casino gaming, a state-of-the-art sports betting lounge, two concert venues and several nightlife venues.
