"Menominee Nation names new casino project director
The Menominee Nation of Wisconsin named Eric Olson as the full-time director for its off-reservation casino project.
The tribe wants to convert a racetrack in Kenosha into a casino. The Bureau of Indian Affairs in Washington, D.C., has yet to make a decision on the proposal.
Olson takes over from local businessman Dennis Troha, who sold his stake in the project after pleading guilty to making illegal campaign contributions. He was a donor to Gov. Jim Doyle (D) who has the power to approve or reject the casino.
The Menominee Nation is facing intense opposition from the Forest County Potawatomi Tribe, which operates an off-reservation casino in Milwaukee..."
Showing posts with label Kenosha. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Kenosha. Show all posts
Sunday, July 15, 2007
Menominee Replace Troha
as posted 7.13.07 at Indianz.com:
Off-Reservation Casino faces uphill battle
posted 7.09.07 at JS Online:
"Tribe counters casino criticism
...The campaign comes as federal officials are wrapping up their study of the casino bid. Interior Secretary Dirk Kempthorne might issue a decision before the end of the summer, said George Skibine, who oversees the Bureau of Indian Affairs' Office of Indian Gaming Management.
If Kempthorne approves the project, it would go to Gov. Jim Doyle, who has veto power over off-reservation casinos in the state.
Doyle has not said whether he would approve the Kenosha casino or the gambling hall planned for Beloit by two Chippewa tribes. Skibine, however, was not optimistic that either would win Kempthorne's blessing.
'Given the secretary's position on off-reservation gaming, it is an uphill battle,' Skibine said.What secretary has said
Skibine noted that Kempthorne has talked about how as Idaho governor, he told a tribe in that state that he would veto its off-reservation casino bid.
And in February, the Bureau of Indian Affairs told numerous tribes seeking off-reservation gambling halls that the bureau frowned on 'reservation shopping' - searching for land far from reservations to open casinos.
The Kenosha site is about 200 miles from the Menominee's reservation near Keshena..."
Tuesday, April 17, 2007
Wisconsin tribes fighting over casino plans; highlight Mohegan Sun involvement
as posted at indianz.com
04.17.07
04.17.07
Wisconsin tribes fight over off-reservation casino
Two Wisconsin tribes continue to battle over plans for an off-reservation casino.
The Menominee Nation wants to open a casino in Kenosha, nearly 200
miles from the reservation. The Mohegan Tribe of Connecticut, the owner of one the largest casinos in the world, is financing the project.
The Forest County Potawatomi Tribe is running ads against the proposal, highlighting the Mohegan involvement. The tribe operates an off-reservation casino in downtown Milwaukee.
The casino is currently before the Bureau of Indian Affairs in Washington, D.C. If it gains approval there, the state governor has to concur with the decision.
Even if that happens, the Menominee Nation still needs to have the land placed in trust for the casino site. Interior Secretary Dirk Kempthorne has raised concerns about off-reservation gaming.
Tribes once tied to Troha fight over off-reservation casino
April 16, 2007
(AP) - Lucrative casino revenue has pitted two Indian tribes from Wisconsin against each other.
The Menominee tribe of Keshena has been trying to get permission to open a casino in Kenosha. The Potawatomi of Crandon operates a casino in downtown Milwaukee.
The Menominee tribe of Keshena has been trying to get permission to open a casino in Kenosha. The Potawatomi of Crandon operates a casino in downtown Milwaukee.
Recently, the Mohegans of Connecticut entered the picture. It's investing money in the Kenosha project to help the Menominee tribe.
Maybe you've seen or heard the ads opposing the Mohegans' involvement. The ads by a group called "No East Coast Gaming in Wisconsin" claim the Kenosha casino will only help the Mohegans.
The group sponsoring the ads include the Potawatomi and other organizations. They say it would be a dangerous precedent for tribes to move across state lines beyond their historic homeland.
The Menominee say the casino profits will provide better education, health care and law enforcement for its tribal members.
The proposal still needs approval from the federal government, as well as a deal with the state.
The Menominee say the casino profits will provide better education, health care and law enforcement for its tribal members.
The proposal still needs approval from the federal government, as well as a deal with the state.
Wednesday, March 28, 2007
MILWAUKEE MEDIA POLL SHOWS STRONG SUPPORT FOR KENOSHA CASINO APPROVAL
Readers of The Business Journal in Milwaukee overwhelmingly believe the federal government should approve the Menominee Indian Tribe of Wisconsin?s proposed Kenosha entertainment center and casino, according to a recent online poll by the newspaper. Results of the Business Journal?s ?Business Pulse Survey? ran strongly in favor of the casino...
read more digg story
read more digg story
Tuesday, March 20, 2007
New Federal Probe of Wis. Trucking Magnate Dennis Troha, Rep. Don Young (R-AK)
Young linked to federal investigation
By FREDERIC J. FROMMER
The Associated Press
(Published: March 20, 2007)
WASHINGTON -- Lawmakers who championed legislation easing truck-hauling regulations said this week that they had no idea that Kenosha, Wis., businessman Dennis Troha's consulting company stood to gain financially from the legislation's passage.
U.S. Attorney Steven Biskupic said that federal investigators are looking into the deal, in which Troha will be paid by his former trucking company, JHT Holdings, through 2010 because Congress passed legislation helping the company.
The legislation, which was included as an amendment in a highway spending bill that became law in 2005, was offered by Reps. Don Young, R-Alaska, and Jim Oberstar, D-Minn., who was at the time the chairman and ranking member, respectively, of the House Transportation Committee. Both members have received more than $20,000 from Troha and his family members and associates.
In addition, Rep. Paul Ryan, R-Wis., had written to Young and Oberstar urging them to support the new regulations.
Bank records obtained by the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel show that Troha's consulting firm, T Group Consulting, received two wire transfers of more than $107,000 from JHT a month after the highway bill became law.
Troha was indicted March 1 on charges of illegally funneling more than $100,000 in campaign donations to Wisconsin Gov. Jim Doyle and the federal account of the state Democratic Party.
The indictment alleges Troha concealed the nature of the transactions in his attempt to obtain approval for a casino in Kenosha and lied to the FBI about it. Troha, the former owner of a major trucking firm now at the center of a multistate tax dispute, has pleaded not guilty.
Ryan said he has donated the $58,000 he received from Troha and his family members to the Kenosha Boys & Girls Club because of that indictment.
The new trucking regulations, which the Federal Highway Administration is scheduled to put into effect this week, will allow 97-foot-long multitruck combinations. Before that, states were allowed to impose 75-foot maximum lengths.
A spokesman for Oberstar, who is now chairman of the House Transportation Committee, said that the congressman supported the amendment after looking into it and determining that the new rules would be safe.
"Jim has traditionally been concerned about longer vehicles," said the spokesman, John Schadl. "He took a long look at this and had to be reassured before he would allow it."
Schadl said that Oberstar meets with constituents and lobbyists all the time on issues.
"The important thing is all of these people clearly state who they are and what their agenda is," he said. "That clearly did not happen in this case, and he was very upset about it."
He added: "The congressman does feel he was misled here. A lot of people represent a lot of groups. You have to be up front."
Shadl said Oberstar was mostly lobbied by John Erickson, a JHT Holdings executive, and by the company’s Washington lobbyist, Stuart Dye. Schadl said that neither of them mentioned the deal with Troha’s consulting company.
Erickson said that he didn’t know about the deal at the time. Dye did not immediately return a telephone message left late Monday afternoon.
The Oberstar campaign’s field director, Alana Petersen, said that Oberstar will donate contributions he received from Troha, family members and associates to the U.S. Treasury’s Bureau of Public Debt.
Young's office declined to comment.
Ryan described his role as providing "routine and appropriate constituent service to a large employer in my district. ... I'm as frustrated as anyone to learn that some individuals did not disclose their personal interests, which were unbeknown to me at all."
He said that he and several colleagues decided to write the letter to the committee in 2005 because they believed the change would be good public policy. Ryan argued that it will improve safety and reduce fuel consumption.
But Dmitri Iglitzin, a labor-law attorney in Seattle, said the new rule will lead to less safety, not more.
"These vehicles are one-third the size of a football field -- these are huge, huge vehicles," he said. "It's dangerous. If it loses control, you have a potential for a catastrophic accident."
He called passage of the legislation "a classic example of what's wrong with the American political system, and what's wrong with Congress."
Troha's lawyer, Franklyn Gimbel, did not return telephone messages seeking comment Monday. But he told the Journal Sentinel his client is the victim of a "media feeding frenzy."
"There is not anything in the story that suggested any criminal wrongdoing," he said.
Gimbel said none of the dealings should be questioned and the deal simply meant Troha would be able to share in any profits the company saw if the legislation were to pass. He sold his majority share in JHT in early 2005 and has since sold all ownership.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)