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Tribes and non-Indian firms eye casinos in Catskills of New York

Wednesday, February 26, 2014


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The Catskills region is seeing a lot of attention in the New York commercial casino race.

The Mashantucket Pequot Tribal Nation of Connecticut has proposed a $400 million casino there. The Mohegan Tribe, also from Connecticut, has expressed interest in a $600 million facility.

At least six other non-Indian developers and gaming groups are looking at sites too. Voters approved a referendum [PDF: Proposal 1] to authorize up to seven casinos in the state, with the Catskills region expected to get two licenses.

“At the end of the day, the government isn’t doing this to make an Indian tribe happy or anything else,” Orange County Executive Steven M. Neuhaus told The New York Times. “It’s about maximizing economic development.”

One tribe remains interested in the Catskills. Unlike the Pequots and Mohegans, the Stockbridge Munsee Band of Mohican Indians of Wisconsin is pursuing a casino under federal law -- the Bureau of Indian Affairs published a final environmental impact statement for the project last month.

The Catskills is about a 90-minute drive north of New York City.

Get the Story:
Newcomers in Bidding Fight for Catskills Casino Weigh Site Closer to New York City (The New York Times 2/26)
Casino developers targeting Orange County (The Middletown Times Herald-Record 2/22) $P Relevant Documents:
Final Environmental Impact Statement | Final Environmental Impact Statement Appendices

Federal Register Notice:
Final Environmental Impact Statement for the Proposed Fee-to-Trust Conveyance of Property and Casino Project for the Stockbridge-Munsee Community, Wisconsin in the Town of Thompson, Sullivan County, New York (January 31, 2014) Related Stories:
Pequot Tribe proposes $400M casino in Catskills of New York (02/12)
Stockbridge-Munsee Band waits for off-reservation casino (02/10)