Fed rejects Kenosha Indian casino plan
#1 Casino Choice of U.S. Players
Blackjack • Slots • Tables • Live Dealer • Video Poker • Crypto

$3,000 Casino Welcome Bonus!

$3,750 Crypto Welcome Bonus!
BOVADA CASINO
January 12, 2009
KENOSHA, WI - The Menominee Indian Tribe of Wisconsin announced last week that
the federal government had denied its application to build a huge casino at
Dairyland Greyhound Park in Kenosha.
Last October the tribe asked the Department of Interior to postpone its decision
pending a change in federal administrations. The request was denied so the tribe
filed a lawsuit in November against the new federal requirements for
off-reservation casinos.
CASINO PLAN
- $808 million project
- 1,200 construction job
- 3,000 full-time jobs
- 116,100-square-foot gaming facility
- 3,100 slot machines
- 75 table games
- Greyhound track (existing)
- Pari-mutuel betting on live and simulcast racing
- Hotel (400-room)
- Restaurants
- Meeting facilities
- Entertainment center (5,000 seats)
- Indoor water park (tentative)
The casino project is not dead according to Evan Zeppos, the casino project
spokesman. The tribe will continue to pursue its lawsuit and believes it will be
able to resubmit its federal application.
Zeppo said, "In the middle of a recession, here we have a project that would
create 3,000 full-time jobs, $1 billion of private sector investment, not a
penny of taxpayer money and 1,200 construction jobs to build the facility. In
addition, this would be the most lucrative compact with the state of any tribe.
No one would pay the state more than this project. No one."
Menominee tribal chair Lisa Waukau said in a statement: "The department's action
in rejecting the tribe's application is not based on the facts or the law. It is
the product of an illegal guidance memorandum which is the current subject of
litigation between the tribe and the department. The department action today
ensures that this litigation will be pursued vigorously by the tribe. The only
viable legal argument that the department has put forward in the litigation is
that it had not made a final decision on our application; therefore, the tribe's
lawsuit was premature. The department's action today removed that argument, and
we are supremely confident that the court will overturn this illegal action. The
rejection today is not the end of the project, only a temporary setback. The
project will create thousands of jobs, generate billions of dollars in revenue
for state and local government and help an impoverished tribe become
economically self-sufficient. It is good for the city and county of Kenosha; it
is good for the State of Wisconsin; it is good for the Menominee Indian Tribe;
and it meets every legitimate federal guideline for approval. It is
disappointing that the federal courts will in the end have to order the
department to do the right thing, but after a thorough review of the laws and
the facts, we believe there is no other possible outcome."
Southeastern Connecticut's Mohegan Tribe have invested millions of dollars in
the Menominees' casino plan in Kenosha and remain committed to its partnership
with the Menominee Tribe in this project. The Mohegans would help build and
manage the casino.
"We stand committed to the Menominee Tribe, and fully support their plan to
litigate," said Lynn Malerba, vice chairwoman of the Mohegan Tribal Council. "We
believe the rejection was made for the wrong reasons, and we believe the
government will come to the correct decision."
Return to Wisconsin Casinos.