Wyandotte Nation awaits action on Kansas casino

Monday, February 22, 2010  

The Wyandotte Nation of Oklahoma could finally see action on its off-reservation casino in Kansas, Second Chief Billy Friend said.

Friend said the Bureau of Indian Affairs might make a decision within 30 days. If that happens, the tribe could start construction on a casino in Park City, near Wichita, within a couple of months.

"If everything happened just right — which doesn't happen very often with government — the best-case scenario, you'd like to be open around Christmas," Friend told The Wichita Eagle.

The tribe would like to a Class III compact but prior governors have refused to negotiate. A case is pending before the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals.

The tribe opened a Class II facility in downtown Kansas City after winning a slew of court rulings against the state and the federal government. Since then, Kansas legalized state-run casinos although none have opened.

Get the Story:
Wyandotte Tribe: Park City casino could open late this year (The Wichita Eagle 2/21)