TULSA, Okla. – At a special meeting Tuesday, the Tulsa County Public Facilities Authority unanimously approved a naming rights agreement with a local tribe’s casino.

As per the terms of the one-year agreement, which goes into effect June 1, the Muscogee (Creek) Nation’s RiverSpirit Casino will pay the Tulsa County Public Facilities Authority $20,000 per month for the naming rights to the Expo Center, a 448,000-square foot facility at the Tulsa County Fairgrounds. Previously known as the QuikTrip Center, the building will soon be known as the River Spirit Expo.

“This office is excited that an entity of the Muscogee (Creek) Nation will have the naming rights,” Muscogee (Creek) Nation Principal Chief George Tiger said Tuesday. “River Spirit would not be River Spirit without the Muscogee (Creek) Nation.”

The casino will also have first right of renewal for up to four one-year consecutive terms, provided it gives at least three months notice before ending the agreement. The monthly rate is the same as the one paid by the QuikTrip during its five-year contract with the Tulsa County Public Facilities Authority.

“We are looking forward to this year after year, being a multi-year partnership,” Expo Square CEO Mark Andrus said.

Despite passing unanimously, one Tulsa County official needed some reassurances before approving the potential partnership.

“My one concern is about the signage on the exterior, specifically the word ‘casino,’” Tulsa County Commissioner Fred Perry said. “I know it is not in the proposed name, and it is already seen inside on some of the signs. However, casino gambling is controversial in some circles and we need to keep the whole populace in mind with regards to signage. That building is used for a lot of family events.”

In November 2012, the Muscogee (Creek) Nation and the Tulsa County Public Facilities Authority signed a six-year naming rights agreement that would have ended live horse racing at Fair Meadows, a track on the eastern edge of the Tulsa County Fairgrounds. That agreement was rescinded before it was scheduled to take effect, leaving the building without a name for the first six months of 2013.