Former Ilitch Casino Partner wants Gov. Deval Patrick to help him collect debt from Mashpee Tribe

Investor calls Wampanoag on debt
9.29.2011

By George Brennan

Herb Strather, the Detriot developer who first invested in the Mashpee Wampanoag tribe's casino efforts in 1999, is calling on the governor to help him recoup the millions he says he spent on the tribe.

In a letter to Gov. Deval Patrick, Strather says he raised in excess of $25 million from a wide variety of investors to help the tribe gain federal recognition and pursue a casino.

He also claims that the tribe has reneged on a handshake deal to make mortgage payments for Maushop Farm, a horse stable in Mashpee he purchased for $675,000 and planned to donate to the Wampanoag once a casino was built. He produced an email from a Bank of America employee stating the mortgage is in default because of slow payments. That bank employee declined to comment Wednesday.

"We are seeking a fairness inclusion in the gaming bill that will make the tribe pay their debts before they can get a compact," Strather wrote to the governor.

A compact is a deal between a tribe and a state that sets the ground rules for how an Indian casino will operate and what payments the state would receive in lieu of taxes.

Strather's letter asks the governor to...

Much of Strather's negotiations, both for the casino and the farm, were with former tribal council Chairman Glenn Marshall. Marshall is serving a federal prison sentence after he pleaded guilty to taking some of Strather's cash and using it to make illegal campaign contributions and keeping it as a personal slush fund.

Marshall was forced to resign in 2007 after the Times reported he was a convicted rapist and that he had lied about his military record.

Still, Strather is harsher in his criticism of current tribal council Chairman Cedric Cromwell than he is of Marshall...

Most of Strather's comments about Cromwell can't be printed... (Read Full Story)

Also see:

• Massachusetts as Debt Collector for Herb Strather @ Middleboro Remembers

• Attorney Dennis Whittlesey up to his Old Tricks
• D.C. Lobbyists Paid $2.33 Million to Advance Shinnecock Casinos
• Herb Strather Defaults on Detroit's St. Regis Hotel Project
• Attorney Dennis Whittlesey up to his Old Tricks
• UPDATED: Formerly rejected MotorCity Casino backers Malik & Strather have taken similar paths to Long Island & Cape Cod
• Controversy seems to always follow Detroit Casino Syndicator Michael Malik
• Mike Malik's partners also had a history of tax dodging; court ordered real estate negligence claims; and 40+ foreclosures

Presidential candidates and the future of off-reservation casinos

3.18.08

Casino no done deal for tribal leaders
Wampanoag bid faces US hurdles

By Matt Viser
Globe Staff

Governor Deval Patrick has repeatedly argued that the state should license casinos because, with or without state approval, the Mashpee Wampanoag tribe will inevitably build one under federal rules. But, in reality, Wampanoag tribal leaders have embarked on a venture that is fraught with uncertainty, their hopes for gambling riches by no means guaranteed.

Daniel O'Connell, the state secretary of economic development and Patrick's chief gaming adviser, recently expressed confidence.

Casino's chances
Most immediately, the fate of the tribe's casino proposal could hinge on the outcome of the 2008 presidential election. A victory by Senator John McCain, who strongly opposes so-called off-reservation Indian casinos, could derail the Wampanoags' effort because they are seeking to build 25 miles from their headquarters on Cape Cod. Even a victory by Democrats Hillary Clinton or Barack Obama, who have murkier positions on tribal gaming, would not make a tribal casino a foregone conclusion. (Complete Original Story)

EDITORIAL: Gov. Patrick gets tough over casinos

2.11.08

Patrick gets tough over casinos

Efforts by the Mashpee Wampanoag tribe to place its planned casino site in Middleborough in a federal trust are more likely to end in a drawn-out fight than a healthy payoff for either the tribe or the residents of Massachusetts. The Patrick administration is right to resist the Wampanoags' efforts and to encourage the tribe instead to bid for a state-issued casino license.

The tribe, which won federal recognition last year, is now seeking to establish official sovereignty over more than 500 acres, which would place it largely outside the state's jurisdiction. The Patrick administration has sent an 125-page objection to the federal Bureau of Indian Affairs, arguing that the tribe has failed to provide adequate safeguards in such areas as zoning, public safety, labor, consumer protection, and the environment. These are substantive issues, but the real message is that the administration is serious about following its own casino plan.

Patrick proposes sensible legislation that would license three destination casinos across the state. The plan is carefully crafted to generate new jobs and new tax revenues, including an estimated $600 million to $900 million in one-time licensing fees and about $400 million in annual revenue. The proposal even offers special consideration to casino developers who join with federally recognized Indian tribes from Massachusetts. The Wampanoags' gambit could weaken this well-designed plan by diluting the worth of the licenses and reducing the state's take. And it opens the door to the snarled world of the federal Indian Gaming Regulatory Act, which poses risks for the tribe as well as the state.

The 1988 law, known as IGRA, provides the statutory framework for tribal gambling. But what, if anything, gets built on that framework is far from predictable. It often takes years for an Indian casino proposal to wind its way through the Department of Interior. More complicated still is the requirement that the tribe and the state negotiate a compact that can cover oversight, payments in lieu of taxes, and methods to handle civil and criminal matters. Such negotiations often break down when one side accuses the other of failure to negotiate in good faith.

The bramble of IGRA-related court cases should serve as a warning. Some decisions place few restrictions on the kinds of gambling that tribes can offer on their land, including full-fledged casinos in states where slots and table games are prohibited. Other decisions leave the tribe with little recourse if it believes a state has failed to negotiate in good faith. One day, the wind blows toward tribal self-determination. The next day, it shifts in the direction of state sovereign immunity. And the secretary of the Interior, not a state's elected officials, calls the final shot.

The federal law is too big a crap shoot. Massachusetts - and the tribe - can do better.

Gov. Patrick against Mashpee casino proposal for Middleborough

2.07.08

Governor opposes casino land request
Urges US to deny tribe's petition in effort to maintain state control

By Matt Viser
Globe Staff

Governor Deval Patrick asked the federal government yesterday to reject efforts by the Mashpee Wampanoag tribe to place its planned casino site in Middleborough in a federal trust, an attempt by Patrick to steer the tribe toward a state-issued casino license that would garner far more money for Massachusetts.

With billions of dollars at stake, Patrick's move was part of a brewing dispute over what form expanded gambling could take in Massachusetts and whether it will be controlled by the state or by the tribe and the federal government.

If the tribe is able to win federal trust status for the land, the property effectively becomes sovereign territory, and the state risks being shut out of a share of gambling proceeds. State regulators would not have any sway over details like zoning, traffic, environmental impacts, and public safety. The value of any future state-licensed casinos would also be diluted.

By filing his 125-page objection with the Bureau of Indian Affairs, the governor officially planted his flag in the Middleborough casino debate for the first time. While the subtext was clear - a fight over money - the administration hinged its arguments yesterday on jurisdiction, saying that trust status would deny the state any control over a host of issues.

Patrick supports tribal gambling, but on the state's terms. He has proposed a state licensing system for three resort casinos in the state and would give a bidding preference to Indian tribes in Massachusetts. Administration officials have been meeting with Wampanoag representatives to discuss the possibility of the tribe bidding on a state gambling license.

While Patrick's move could help him gain negotiating leverage, it is unlikely to persuade the federal government to deny the Wampanoag trust application, specialists say. States have little influence over whether Indian tribes are able to place lands in federal trust, even for the purpose of building casinos.

"The governor has no voice in the matter," said Dennis Whittlesey, a Washington-based lawyer specializing in Indian law. Last year, he represented the town of Middleborough in negotiating a deal that requires the tribe to pay the town $7 million a year if a casino is built.

"The governor can complain all he wants, but it does not matter," Whittlesey said. "He has no input."

The governor's filing yesterday questioned the actions of former tribal chairman Glenn Marshall, who resigned in August after news surfaced of a past rape conviction and his misrepresentation of his military record. The state's document states that Marshall, who was involved in negotiating the contract between the tribe and its outside partners, is a subject of a federal investigation by the Internal Revenue Service and the Justice Department.

It also says that the financial deal between the tribe and its outside investors has not been disclosed to the state and that, without details, there is no evidence that the tribe would receive the most benefit from a casino.

"We have significant concerns about the initial proposal," Daniel O'Connell, Patrick's economic development secretary and chief gaming adviser, said in an interview yesterday. "We don't think it has enough information provided. Not enough work has been done to make the case for land [to go] into trust."

Administration officials have met with tribal leaders three times and have another meeting planned later this month, to discuss both the tribe's plans for the land and the administration's concerns.

"The tribe continues to have productive discussions with the Patrick Administration," tribal council chairman Shawn Hendricks Sr. said in a written statement yesterday. "We have clearly stated our reasons for sovereign land, and the governor has clearly stated his questions and concerns for the Commonwealth. We look forward to working through the issues raised with him, and I am confident we can do so."

The tribe won federal recognition last year, which set it on course to build a resort casino with 4,000 slot machines, table games, a 1,500-room hotel, and a host of amenities, including a golf course. The next critical step for the tribe is getting federal approval to place its land in trust, a process that can often take years.

When the tribe won recognition, Patrick telephoned the tribal council to extend his congratulations, and they agreed to further talks about taking land into trust.

Tribal leaders have said they would pursue a casino license under the governor's proposed legislation, which would legalize three casinos in Massachusetts. But given the political uncertainty of the proposal, which has not yet been taken up in the House, the tribe is also pursuing a plan to put the 539 acres in Middleborough into federal trust, which would effectively make it part of the tribe's reservation.

Other states have handled the situation similarly, opposing initial applications on a legal or technical basis with the hope of gaining political leverage and negotiating power.

"Very few governors from the get-go come out in support of those applications," said Steven Light, codirector of the Institute for the Study of Tribal Gaming Law and Policy at the University of North Dakota. "It's a political thicket. It's a sticky issue for them."

What is unusual is that, in Massachusetts, the governor is simultaneously pushing for legalization of casinos under a proposed state law.

Governor Tommy Thompson of Wisconsin opposed applications in the 1990s. In Oregon, Governor Ted Kulongoski in 2005 came out in support for an Indian casino in the Columbia River Gorge. Governor Tim Pawlenty of Minnesota initially opposed casinos, but then embarked on a failed bid to develop a joint partnership between the state and the tribes.

Sean Murphy of the Globe staff and Globe correspondent Christine Wallgren contributed to this report. Matt Viser can be reached at maviser@globe.com.

Boston Herald reports Detroit casinos have fallen short of revenue projections and jobs

1.23.08

Detroit has no luck with casino trio eyed by Deval

By Dave Wedge http://www.bostonherald.com/ Local Coverage

DETROIT - Three Detroit casinos similar to those proposed by Gov. Deval Patrick have fallen about a half-billion dollars short of initial projections and created thousands fewer jobs than predicted in what could be a stark warning to Massachusetts.

In 1998, developers, politicians and casino proponents promised that three Detroit casinos would rake in up to $1.8 billion but in 2007 the gaming parlors took in $1.335 billion, according to the Michigan Gaming Control Board.

A Michigan state senate report in 2000, meanwhile, estimated the casinos would create 10,500 jobs but so far the gambling venues have just 7,000 permanent workers. The same report predicted the city’s annual gaming haul would reach $1.4 billion by 2004.

The news comes as the Detroit casinos posted slight revenue increases this year yet also showed signs of significantly slower growth. Revenue generated by three Motor City casinos crept up in 2007 - from $1.303 billion to $1.33 billion - but growth was down four percent over the previous year.

The Herald had reported that gambling revenue at the city’s three casinos was down in 2007 but newly posted numbers that included December revenues showed an overall increase of about $30 million.

Still, Detroit City Councilor JoAnn Watson said the casinos have “created social and economic devastation” that has led to 20 percent of the city’s small businesses going “belly up.”

“There were a lot of promises made in terms of how the economy would improve and jobs, jobs, jobs,” Watson said. “But the circumstances in the aftermath of the casinos has been ‘Lord have mercy.’ The ballyhooed promise of prosperity has not occurred.”

Patrick’s controversial plan for two commercially operated casinos and one Indian gaming hall has been a reality in Detroit since voters legalized gambling more than a decade ago.

Revenue in 2007 was down about $450,000 at the Greektown Casino, but up slightly at the MGM Grand Detroit and the MotorCity Casino, according to the state gaming board. All three casinos have either recently completed or are in the midst of massive expansions that will include more gaming space and hotel rooms.

The luke-warm numbers sound a warning for Patrick’s headline-grabbing 2009 budget plan, which calls for $300 million in casino license fees to pay for schools, public safety, transportation and much-needed tax relief.

“What I’ve seen is there’s only a finite pot of gambling money that people have,” said former Michigan Rep. Allen Lowe, who opposed Detroit’s three-casino plan. “I don’t know that economically we’ve seen much of a boon here.”

Michigan state Sen. Alan Cropsey, a vocal casino opponent, said the slowdown in Detroit shows the market is “tapped out.”

“This really is taking money out of the local area and putting it into the casino owners’ pocket,” Cropsey said, adding that it’s “foolish” for a government to rely on gambling revenue.

Kofi Jones, spokeswoman for Patrick’s economic development secretary Dan O’Connell, said the governor’s panel looked at several regions with casinos, but “no one model alone formed the basis of the governor’s legislation.”

“We are confident that our plan will meet its projections,” Jones said.

Revenues aside, the impact of the Detroit casinos has been questionable as the city remains severely blighted, with entire blocks of vacant, boarded-up buildings infesting surrounding neighborhoods.

“They ruin the city,” said Detroit autoworker Mark Hauswirth during a recent visit to the MotorCity Casino. “People blow all their money. It don’t help nobody but the people who own them.”

Howard Berenbom, who runs the online magazine Casino Detroit, said the casinos have been “disappointing,” mainly because a plan to spur local development by locating them all on the Detroit River never materialized. Still, Berenbom believes they’ve given the city a boost.

“It brings in jobs and revenue,” Berenbom said. “The negative is that some poor people go and gamble and a lot of people can lose.”

Michigan politicians pushed through legalization by focusing on how much local money was flowing to casinos across the Detroit River in Windsor, Ontario, much like Massachusetts’ drive has been fueled by concerns about tourism dollars going to Connecticut casinos.

Article URL: http://www.bostonherald.com/news/regional/general/view.bg?articleid=1068406

MGM Mirage looking to expand in Mass with Indian partners

11.03.07

Conn. tribes explore Mass. for casino sites
Race to maintain hold on N.E. market

By Matt Viser, Globe Staff

The Connecticut Indian tribe that operates the Foxwoods casino and its Las Vegas partner are actively scouring Massachusetts for casino locations, part of a race between two of Connecticut's tribes to protect their share of the New England gambling market.

The Mashantucket Pequot and MGM Mirage, which operates the Bellagio and MGM Grand among other resorts in Las Vegas and other casinos around the country, have so far shopped for a site in the Boston area and in Western Massachusetts. Foxwoods officials spent a good portion of the past two months in talks with operators of Wonderland Greyhound Park in Revere, but the talks fizzled. An executive from MGM Mirage, meanwhile, has looked at a 1,600-acre tract in the Central Massachusetts town of Warren.

Another tribe, the Mohegan, which operates Mohegan Sun, was the first Connecticut tribe to plant a flag in Massachusetts with a proposed site on 150 acres in Palmer.

The competing tribes' interest in bidding for gaming licenses under Governor Deval Patrick's plan to introduce resort-casinos demonstrates how they are seeking to use their riches to expand beyond Connecticut's borders, after enjoying a lock on New England casino gambling for more than a decade.

Under Patrick's proposal, the state would auction off three licenses, one each in metropolitan Boston, Southeastern Massachusetts, and Western Massachusetts.

The Pequot formed a partnership with MGM Mirage last year to seek development possibilities worldwide. Scott Snow, executive vice president of MGM Mirage, recently toured the Warren location, according to the current property owners.

The Warren site, adjacent to the intersection of Interstates 90 and 84, is less than 10 miles from the area in Palmer where the Mohegan tribe wants to build.

"We are interested in Massachusetts," said Alan Feldman, MGM's senior vice president of public affairs, who stressed that any discussions are preliminary and would depend on what the final legislation, which the Legislature is not expected to take up until next year, looks like. "There's interest on the part of everyone in the industry. We'll see where it all leads."

MGM, the largest landowner on Las Vegas Boulevard, is one of the dominant casino developers in the world, operating several resorts in Las Vegas and casinos in Detroit, Atlantic City, and Biloxi, Miss. ... (Full Story)

Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe prefers Indian casino

Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe prefers Indian casino

via Indianz.Com Indian Gaming News on 10/18/07

The Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe of Massachusetts is moving forward with its plans for a casino despite a call from Gov. Deval Patrick (D) to pursue a commercial casino. The tribe wants to open a casino in the town of...

Part II: Strather fronting for big time casino owners all along

10.07.07

Casino deal remains clouded in secrecy

By STEPHANIE VOSK and GEORGE BRENNAN
Cape Cod Times

October 07, 2007 6:00 AM
Editor's Note: This is the last of a two-part series. (Part 1)

MASHPEE — South African casino moguls Sol Kerzner and Len Wolman resuscitated the Mohegan tribe's bid for federal recognition, and more than a decade later they continue to reap millions of dollars.

The Mashpee Wampanoag tribe can only wonder how much of their sovereignty has been signed away to help Kerzner and Wolman continue their dominance of New England's gambling industry. Their ties to the 1,500-member Mashpee tribe pre-date their public relationship, perhaps by years.

The tribe's deal with the men ignited the renewed debate to legalize casinos in Massachusetts. With Gov. Deval Patrick's recent thumbs up on full-scale gaming, they could ultimately change the face of the Bay State.

In February, when the tribe received the final word it would receive federal recognition, the ink was already dry on a deal signed two months prior by tribal leaders and Kerzner, 72, and Wolman, 52.

Then tribal Chairman Glenn Marshall, 57, hid the fact that a casino deal was in place — both from the tribe at large and the public.

In a meeting with the Times editorial board in February, he hinted that the tribe's most public investor, Detroit casino developer Herb Strather, 56, would soon play a smaller role in the tribe's quest to build a casino. But Marshall hedged when he was asked about whether he would entertain signing a deal with other investors.

"Let me tell you, if (Strather) wanted out, he could sell and make money right now," Marshall told the editorial board. "But it would have to be somebody the tribe liked. Somebody who was successful in the arena. Somebody with style and grace."

In a letter to the tribal council in 2004, Strather already referenced other unnamed investors and warned that they might pull out if Marshall was voted out as chairman in the 2005 council elections.

But with Marshall's victory that year, the investors held tight — and silent — as the Bureau of Indian Affairs reviewed the tribe's petition for federal recognition. (Complete Story)


http://www.southcoasttoday.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20071007/NEWS/710070340

Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe was up for sale to highest bidder

9.29.07

Tribe has been put up for sale to wealthy outsiders

By Peter Kenney (Gadfly)

The internal politics of any family, clan, tribe or race can be brutal. All of history shows us conflict among all people at various times. But the Mashpee Wampanoag tribe faces a challenge of unknown proportion as it attempts to stay the course toward a tribal casino. If the Mashpee casino is to be what some call the new buffalo, there is considerable housekeeping to be done, unfortunately as much for the benefit of outsiders as for the tribe itself.

Due process must be guaranteed for tribe's members

The tribe was committed to agreements and obligations unknown to the tribe's members.When a corporation borrows from a bank or issues stock shares or bonds, there must be a corporate resolution showing that due process was followed by those who govern the corporation, that the corporation's rules were followed to the letter. The same is true when agreements are cemented between a government or government agency and a corporation.

Currently it appears to observers outside the tribe and to many members of the tribe itself that under former tribal council chairman Glenn Marshall, the tribe was committed to agreements and obligations unknown to the tribe's members.

Questions are asked, answers are scarce

The first fruits of federal recognition appear to be lost to tribe members... rights they always had under U.S. law. As members of the tribe attempt to resolve issues that will affect how well the tribe can function as a partner in a hugely expensive undertaking, the politics of the absurd prevent progress. Questions are asked, but answers are scarce. While issues are raised, solutions are put out of reach. An important meeting is scheduled, but there is no quorum. Worst of all, the first fruits of federal recognition appear to be the loss by tribe members of rights they always had under U.S. law, and protections that accompany those rights. Secrecy, shunning, denial of free petition and leadership silence are the currency of the tribe's new sovereignty.

Investors have vested interest in tribe's competitors

There are those who feel that the tribe was put up for sale, but no one told the members, and the only buyers were already wealthy outsiders whose known history shows them all too willing to reap huge profits from gambling in Connecticut at the expense of a tribal partner.

The tribe was not told that Herb Strather, their angel from Detroit, was selling his interests in the tribe's future, or to whom, or at what profit. In fact, the great majority of the tribe's members do not even know what agreements and contracts Strather had with them originally, nor do they know what the new investors have on paper. It seems that the tribe/developer partnership will apply to the state for some sort of gaming license, but will the state be assured that it is not helping the tribe cut its own fiscal throat? I have recently learned, for example, that Strather's agreement to sell his interest began a year earlier than I first thought. His deal was done long before June of this year.

Tribe's governances must handled properly and fairly

The Mashpee Wampanoag obligation is first to themselves and only then to others, even casino partners. It is critical for the tribe's governance to operate properly and fairly. It is critical for the cultural and personal success of the tribe's members, but it is also necessary for the tribe's financial success, for its future and the future of its children. The Mashpee Wampanoag obligation is first to themselves and only then to others, even casino partners. A reorganized tribal council with a unified tribe can weather any storm and a strong and just council will present the right face to the world. Just as important, the tribe's spokesman should be a Mashpee Wampanoag with spiritual connections to his or her people, not a white guy from Boston with political connections known only to him.

Whatever Gov. Deval Patrick decides, whatever the Legislature decides, there should be a valid corporate resolution from and by the true people of Mashpee, an informed and widely supported decision by the entire tribe to move forward with a particular partner under predetermined conditions. If the governor settles for anything less, he will be doing a great disservice to this ancient and honorable people and giving his blessing to greed, fraud and exploitation.

We have consumer protection laws, banking laws, anti-fraud statutes ... what about tribal casino rip-off protections?

Indianz.com: Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe hopeful on casino

as posted 9.23.07 at Indianz.com:

Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe hopeful on casino

Acquiring land for a casino can take years but the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe of Massachusetts believes it can beat the state to the market.

The tribe filed its land-into-trust application late last month. Completing the process will take at least 18 months, it not longer.

Gov. Deval Patrick (D) announced a proposal for three commercial casinos last week. He believes the casinos could be up and running by 2012.

A tribal spokesperson is skeptical of that claim. "If it takes two years to do the environmental review [for the tribe] I am skeptical that this (state) process is going to be quicker than that," the spokesperson told The New Bedford Standard-Times.

Other newly recognized tribes like the Mashpee have waited five years or more to clear legal hurdles and open casinos.

Get the Story:
Tribe eyes early casino (The New Bedford Standard-Times 9/24)

Indianz.com: Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe won't pull casino plans

as posted 9.21.07 at Indianz.com:

Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe won't pull casino plans

The Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe of Massachusetts will forge ahead with plans to build its own casino.

A spokesperson for the tribe disputed a report that said the tribe was interested in bidding on a commercial license. Gov. Deval Patrick (D) is proposing up to three casinos in the state.

The exact locations of the state casinos have not been specified. But the tribe says it will build in the town of Middleboro no matter what the state does.

Meanwhile, the Aquinnah Wampanaog Tribe says it is definitely interested in bidding on a commercial license. But Chairman Donald Widdiss said he wants the tribe to be given preferential treatment in the process.

Get the Story:
Tribe still focused on Middleboro (The New Bedford Standard-Times 9/21)

Indianz.com: Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe eyes state license

as posted 9.20.07 at Indianz.com:

Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe eyes state license

The Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe of Massachusetts is interested in bidding on one of the three casinos being proposed by Gov. Deval Patrick (D).

The tribe has already started the land-into-trust process to acquire an initial reservation where gaming can take place. But going through state process could put the tribe closer to its goal.

The Deval administration's three casino plan envisions one in southeastern Massachusetts, where the Mashpees are based. But tribe's chosen site is in Middleboro whereas the governor favors New Bedford.

The federal process will take at least 18 months. Patrick's proposal still needs legislative approval.

Get the Story:
Mashpee tribe eyes state license (The Boston Globe 9/20)
Username: indianz@indianz.com, Password: indianz
Race for a casino only just beginning: Tribe has 3 competitors for one license in region (GateHouse News Service 9/20)
Patrick's casino plan ups the ante in town (The Boston Globe 9/20)

Detroit-based casino developer convicted of bribing a police officer among Gov. Deval Patrick's donors

posted 9.18.07 at the Scotto Bloggo:

Only in Massachusetts...

...The question of casino gambling is hardly new to Massachusetts, but when confronted with the inevitability of the Mashpee Wampanoag tribe building a casino in Middleboro, the Massachusetts government quickly hustled in to get a cut of the action. Massachusetts either gets a significant piece of the action or Massachusetts won't allow it. Overnight, Governor Deval Patrick went from having no opinion about legalizing casino gambling to supporting the legalizing licensing of three casinos in the state. Coincidentally, Detroit casino developer Herb Strather, a key financier of the Wampanoag tribe's activities and a convicted briber, was a maximum donor to Patrick's campaign last year...

Detroit casino developer Herb Strather, the Mashpee Wampanoag tribe's first and most visible investor, was arrested on a bribery charge in 1977 for trying to buy off a police officer in Michigan, according to a 1997 report in the Detroit Free Press.

Strather was previously one of the founders of MotorCity Casino and a partner of Marian Ilitch and Michael J. Malik, Sr.

Mashpee Wampanoag make $250,000 payment to Middleborough

9.19.07

Gaming News
Massachusetts tribe makes payment


MIDDLEBORO, Massachusetts -- As reported by the South of Boston Enterprise: "The Mashpee Wampanoag tribe presented a $250,000 check to selectmen Monday night as the first payment in the casino host agreement the tribe signed with the town.

"Newly named tribal Chairman Shawn Hendricks, who introduced himself to selectmen, reassured the board that he wanted to 'let everyone know we will continue on our course.'

"...Hendricks told selectmen he 'will not jump to any quick decisions,' referring to Gov. Deval Patrick's announcement Monday to support legalized gambling in three locations in the state, including southeastern Massachusetts.

"...The contract, signed by the town and the tribe and approved by a historic, outdoor town meeting in July, called for the first payment within 90 days, but the tribe made the payment within six weeks..."

Gov. Deval Patrick outlines plans for casinos; $450M for roads, tax relief vowed

9.18.07

Gaming News
Massachusetts governor releases casino plans

BOSTON, Massachusetts -- As reported by the Worchester Telegram: "Gov. Deval L. Patrick yesterday laid out his plans to bring casino gambling to Massachusetts, proposing three resort-style gambling casinos and promising to dedicate up to $450 million in annual state revenues to rebuilding roads and bridges and local property tax relief.

"The governor said he would limit the casinos to one in Southeastern Massachusetts, one in Western Massachusetts and one in Boston or north of Boston. He said he expected they would create more than 20,000 jobs and billions in state tax revenue.

"Half the revenues, he said, would be dedicated to direct property tax credits to low- and moderate-income homeowners while he argued that economic expansion from casinos would help pay for health care programs and better public safety.

"The plan, if adopted by the Legislature as proposed, would mean no casinos would be built in Central Massachusetts. So far, however, House leaders are saying they are not convinced casinos should be allowed in Massachusetts..."