MASHANTUCKET, Connecticut— Foxwoods Resort Casino recently announced it will begin $85 million in planned renovations and improvements this fall that include adding new event space and transforming an existing ballroom into a new gaming space, according to a series of press releases regarding renovations celebrating the property’s 30th anniversary.

The casino resort in Mashantucket, Connecticut, will add a new 50,000-square-foot casino and a 250-seat, celebrity chef-branded restaurant. The new gaming space will be Foxwoods’ sixth, joining the resort’s five existing casinos.

The new gaming space will replace the Grand Ballroom. The ballroom had been used for meetings, conferences and other special events, but it was no longer needed after Foxwoods opened a new, $7 million, 30,000-square-foot bingo hall and decided to convert its original bingo hall into event space.

The obsolete bingo hall will become the 75,000-square-foot Rainmaker Expo Center, which is scheduled to open in mid-November. When that happens, construction on the new gaming space will begin.

The Expo Center will give the resort about 40,000 more square feet than it previously had in the Grand Ballroom, allowing the property to expand into new meeting markets, such as sporting events, car and boat shows and comic book conventions.

For more information, visit foxwoods.com.