5.30.07INDIAN GAMING: The governor's agreement must be OK'd by Thursday. The Big Lagoon tribe is hopeful.
By MICHELLE DeARMOND
By MICHELLE DeARMOND
The Press-Enterprise
A Northern California tribe's troubled bid to build a casino in Barstow will die this week unless Gov. Schwarzenegger and the tribe reach an agreement to extend the bid.
The Big Lagoon Rancheria, which sits in environmentally sensitive sequoia territory, agreed in August 2005 to abandon plans to build a casino on its reservation in Humboldt County. The tribe also agreed to drop a legal battle with the state over those plans.
In exchange, the governor signed a two-casino proposal for Big Lagoon and the impoverished Los Coyotes Band of Cahuilla & Cupeno Indians of San Diego County to build in Barstow. Big Lagoon's agreement, however, expires Thursday if it doesn't have legislative and federal approval.
The Legislature has yet to approve the proposal in the face of strong opposition from powerful Southern California gaming tribes. Without a time extension, the deal is almost certainly dead.
Also, the U.S. Interior Department would have to approve turning a parcel of Barstow land into Big Lagoon reservation land by Thursday.
Members of the Big Lagoon tribe are weighing their options but might agree to extend their agreement with the state through mid-September if Schwarzenegger offers, said Jason Barnett, a spokesman for the tribe.
A spokeswoman for the governor said Tuesday she didn't have anything new to report about the Big Lagoon deal.
Barnett and the governor's spokeswoman, Sabrina Lockhart, said they expected to have some news later in the week.
"Obviously, things are taking longer than both sides anticipated it taking when they signed it," Barnett said, noting that the tribe still would like a casino in Barstow.
"I think we're optimistic that where there's a will there's a way."
Even if the Big Lagoon tribe and the governor's office agree to extend their accord, the casino proposal for San Bernardino County still faces difficulties in the Legislature. Lawmakers rejected the proposal last year, despite pleas by the tribes to let them pursue the opportunity for economic development.
Several Inland tribes testified against the proposal, saying it's wrong for tribes to travel hundreds of miles from their reservations to open casinos. Federal law prohibits so-called off-reservation gaming except in rare cases.
Big Lagoon and Los Coyotes representatives have argued that their opponents are actually contesting a pair of casinos along the route to Las Vegas because they might pose competition for Inland casinos.
They have accused those tribes of exerting excessive influence over lawmakers through campaign contributions.
Reach Michelle DeArmond at 951-368-9441 or mdearmond@PE.com.
http://www.pe.com/localnews/sbcounty/stories/PE_News_Local_D_barstow30.a31270.html
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