LITTLE BOSTON —The 12- to 18-foot totem pole that Jake Jones will carve for The Point Hotel will contain a lot of symbolism. Two hands holding a copper plate, representing wealth. A chief. A bear holding an orca, a symbol of the Port Gamble S’Klallam Tribe.

But in a way, the totem pole will symbolize how far the Tribe has come since it began building its new economy some 20 years ago.

Jones, a former Port Gamble S’Klallam Tribe chairman, remembers when the Tribe had $2,000 in the bank, when the Tribe’s housing authority couldn’t get bank loans to fund new-home construction, when the roads on the reservation were dirt.

“Our enterprises were shellfish and salmon,” Jones said. “All of us worked out at the mill. Then the mill shut down.”

Empowered by the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act, the Port Gamble S’Klallam Tribe began building a new economy. “We talked about a hotel then, but we had to build our own enterprises first,” Jones said. “We built the casino first, and when we started making money, we built the store. Those enterprises helped the Tribe build funds so it could afford to (borrow).”

Now, “we’re doing much better financially, We don’t have to depend on the outside anymore.”

The Port Gamble S’Klallam Tribe hosts an open house regarding its proposed four-story, 94-room hotel, 6-8 p.m. Aug. 20 in The Point Casino Event Center. It’s a chance for residents to learn more about the project, including the construction schedule and on-site amenities, and peruse site plans and project renderings on display. Project planners will be available to answer questions and discuss various elements of the new hotel.

Ground work is expected to begin in fall. The hotel will be built adjacent to The Point Casino and is scheduled to be open in fall 2016. The hotel will create 35-40 jobs, boosting the number of people employed by the Port Gamble S’Klallam Tribe to 500, according to employment numbers posted by the Kitsap Economic Development Alliance.

“It’s been a long time coming,” Jones said of the hotel project.

The hotel will be the latest addition to the Tribe’s economic development portfolio, which includes the casino and event center; Heronswood, the 15-acre botanical garden and events venue; Gliding Eagle Marketplace; and Ravenwood Market.

The Point Hotel (www.thepointcasinoandhotel.com) will be the second-largest hotel and one of five in North Kitsap. The largest, Suquamish Clearwater Casino Resort, has 183 guest rooms and offers six restaurants and cafes, a spa, live entertainment, and golf at the Suquamish-owned White Horse Golf Club. The Poulsbo Inn & Suites, on Highway 305, has 83 guest rooms and offers local-getaway packages. The Guesthouse Inn & Suites, next to Poulsbo Village, has 63 rooms. The Blue Water Inn, on Highway 104 in Kingston, has 20 rooms.

The Point Hotel will have a 44-seat meeting space, a 64-seat casual dining restaurant, and a large outdoor gathering area that includes an outdoor kitchen and a fire pit that will be used for clam and salmon bakes.

Another major feature planned for the hotel is Northwest Coast Native art throughout the property. Currently, this is expected to include specially created installations in the lobby, a series of totem poles in the outdoor gathering area, and a four-story welcome pole, which will feature a “paddles up” design to greet guests as they arrive on the property.

Guests at The Point Hotel will have access to entertainment at the event center, events at Heronswood, and other area attractions. Ultimately, a new casino and event center will be built south of the hotel, S’Klallam officials said, with the current casino — a tensioned-fabric membrane building — used for some other form of entertainment.

The Tribe plans to construct a full-scale mockup of a standard hotel room on the floor of The Point Casino, to be completed by the end of the year.