The House Natural Resouces Committee is reportedly set to hear two bills, H.R. 2176 and H.R. 4115, on February 6th that would allow for off-reservation casinos in the greater Detroit area -- off-reservation Indian casino proposals for Port Huron and Romulus respectively.
H.R. 2176 is regarding the Bay Mills Indian Community and H.R. 4115 the Sault Ste Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians. The Bay Mills Indian Community already has two casinos on its Brimley, Michigan reservation.. The Sault Ste Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians is majority owner in Detroit's Greektown commercial casino as well as the five Kewadin casinos.
Both H.R. 2176 and H.R. 4115 are said to bring about land claims settlements that both tribes have alleged to the same 110-acres of 
property in the Charlotte Beach subdivision on the St. Marys River east of Barbeau, Michigan on the Upper Peninsula.
property in the Charlotte Beach subdivision on the St. Marys River east of Barbeau, Michigan on the Upper Peninsula.Michael J. Malik, Sr. and Tom Celani (official bio) were one-time casino investment partners. They brought the realization of a Little River Band of Ottawa Indians casino resort to Manistee, Michigan; and they were behind the effort to bring commercial gaming to Detroit. Also partnered with the pair was Mrs. Marian Ilitch, now sole proprietor of Detroit's MotorCity Casino. Both Celani and Malik were founders of MotorCity Casino although Malik wasn't licenseable by the Michigan Gaming Control Board (MGCB) and was forced to sell his interest in MotorCity casino before the gambling hall opened its doors. Celani later sold his interest in MotorCity Casino to partner Marian Ilitch when she also bought majority shareholder MGM Mirage/Mandalay Resorts. Celani has gone on to manage casinos in various states across the country including the Cal-Neva Lodge, owned at one-time by Frank Sinatra, and was a major shareholder in SODAK Gaming, Inc.
Both Celani and Malik at one-time purchased land in the Charlotte Beach subdivision.
Now Malik is behind the Bay Mills Indian Community's effort to bring commercial gaming to Port Huron --Marian Ilitch is a staunch supporter of that proposal. Malik has pushed that agenda unsuccesfully for more than a decade. Some believe that Celani was a one-time partner in Malik's efforts with the Bay Mills tribe. And now, as it was announced yesterday, Celani is a partner and president of the Sault Tribe's Greektown Casino in Detroit.
Both tribes have reservations on Michigan's Upper Peninsula which are located more than 350 miles by automobile from their proposed off-reservation casino sites. Both Port Huron and Romulus are in the greater Detroit area.
No comments:
Post a Comment