The Kiowa Tribe is opening a new gaming facility in Oklahoma next week and is looking to the Trump administration to help with future projects.
The Kiowa Casino in Carnegie, which features 117 gaming machines, debuts on March 21. It's located at the site of a former facility that's been completely refurbished. "It is an attractive location, and we expect it to be successful from the opening based on all of the studies and projections," Chairman Matthew Komalty wrote in the March 6 issue of the Kiowa News. Plans are also in the works for two more casinos. The tribe is looking to the Trump administration to approve land-into-trust applications for sites in Hobart and in Elgin, Komalty said. The tribe hosted Secretary of the Interior Ryan Zinke during his visit to Oklahoma in January, Komalty noted. "Whether or not you agree with his politics, it is instrumental to have a personal relationship with people who can assist our tribe," the chairman wrote. Komalty also pointed out another connection with the new administration. John Tahsuda, who serves as the Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs at the Bureau of Indian Affairs, is Kiowa.