When the Shinnecock Nation brought up gaming a few years ago, local immediately rejected the idea of a casino in the pricey Hamptons area of Long Island.

But even though the state-recognzied tribe lost its bid to assert sovereignty over a potential gaming site, opposition has softened. The tribe has met with local officials to discuss alternative locations for a casino and to address related issues.

“We want to sit down and negotiate something amicable to all of us, a win-win. We’re always trying to be good neighbors," Frederick C. Bess, the chairman of the tribe's board of trustees, told The New York Times. "We have to live together on Long Island.”

The reservation sits on the far eastern end of Long Island. Nearby, celebrities and financial tycoons own multi-million dollar homes as the tribe suffers high rates of unemployment.

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Inching Ahead on a Tribal Casino Agreement (The New York Times 7/27)
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