8.15.07Casino site would grow by 205 acres
By Christine Wallgren, Globe Correspondent
MIDDLEBOROUGH -- The Mashpee Wampanoag secured an option yesterday to buy an additional 205 acres in Middleborough, boosting its land holdings for a planned resort casino to 531 acres, the tribe said.
Tribal leaders expect to build the $1 billion casino, hotel, and resort facility on about 100 acres and leave the remaining acreage as a buffer. Wampanoag spokesman Scott Ferson would not disclose the price for the latest land deal, which he said would be the last in Middleborough for the Cape-based tribe.
"That is the entirety of the property," he said.
The tribe and its financial backers currently own outright 125 acres purchased from the town at an auction in April. In May, the Wampanoag secured an option to buy 201 contiguous acres owned by the family of Daniel Striar.
The land in the latest agreement is located off Precinct Street and is owned by Bruce Gates, a lieutenant in the local police force, and his two sisters.
Gates drew criticism from casino opponents because he headed security at the July 28 Town Meeting that sealed the casino deal while negotiations were still underway for the Precinct Street property.
Subsequently, several residents filed conflict-of-interest complaints against Gates with the secretary of state's office, where they are under review.
Town officials have said they were aware that Gates could benefit financially by approval of a local casino, but saw no conflict with his police duties at the meeting.
The options on the land will be recorded at the Plymouth County Registry of Deeds, and no further action is expected to be taken on them for more than a year, as the tribe negotiates with state and federal officials on building the casino.
The tribe intends to place the entire 531 acres in federal trust, a status that exempts the site from state and local control. The application process, done through the US Department of the Interior, is expected to take about 18 months.
"The tribe will exercise its option to purchase the properties when its application to place the land in trust is approved," Ferson said.
By Christine Wallgren, Globe Correspondent
MIDDLEBOROUGH -- The Mashpee Wampanoag secured an option yesterday to buy an additional 205 acres in Middleborough, boosting its land holdings for a planned resort casino to 531 acres, the tribe said.
Tribal leaders expect to build the $1 billion casino, hotel, and resort facility on about 100 acres and leave the remaining acreage as a buffer. Wampanoag spokesman Scott Ferson would not disclose the price for the latest land deal, which he said would be the last in Middleborough for the Cape-based tribe.
"That is the entirety of the property," he said.
The tribe and its financial backers currently own outright 125 acres purchased from the town at an auction in April. In May, the Wampanoag secured an option to buy 201 contiguous acres owned by the family of Daniel Striar.
The land in the latest agreement is located off Precinct Street and is owned by Bruce Gates, a lieutenant in the local police force, and his two sisters.
Gates drew criticism from casino opponents because he headed security at the July 28 Town Meeting that sealed the casino deal while negotiations were still underway for the Precinct Street property.
Subsequently, several residents filed conflict-of-interest complaints against Gates with the secretary of state's office, where they are under review.
Town officials have said they were aware that Gates could benefit financially by approval of a local casino, but saw no conflict with his police duties at the meeting.
The options on the land will be recorded at the Plymouth County Registry of Deeds, and no further action is expected to be taken on them for more than a year, as the tribe negotiates with state and federal officials on building the casino.
The tribe intends to place the entire 531 acres in federal trust, a status that exempts the site from state and local control. The application process, done through the US Department of the Interior, is expected to take about 18 months.
"The tribe will exercise its option to purchase the properties when its application to place the land in trust is approved," Ferson said.
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