Advanced Forum Search -- Advanced Casino Search

Choctaws Not Interested in Coast Casino
Message was posted: 12:54 Jun 3rd, 2006

User: libblesp Rank: Casino Gold: 58782CG Contributor rating: 128760 Status: Offline

Casino news source: Clarion Ledger - http://www.clarionledger.com/ CHOCTAWS NOT INTERESTED IN COAST CASINO Chief Phillip Martin had a quick answer when asked if the Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians might follow the lead of the Mashantucket Pequot Tribal Nation and consider entering Mississippi's commercial gaming market. "No," he replied. He said the Mashantucket Pequot Tribal Nation, which owns and operates Foxwoods Resort Casino on tribal lands in Connecticut, has more money and fewer members than the Choctaws. The Mashantucket Pequots have announced plans for a casino on part of the property once occupied by the Broadwater Beach Hotel in Biloxi. Martin was part of a seminar on "Tribal Gaming: Protecting the Gains and Maximizing the Opportunity" at the 13th annual Southern Gaming Summit. Foxwoods Development Co. wants to purchase 15 acres in the middle of 266 acres owned by Broadwater Development LLC in Biloxi and have exclusive gaming rights for development. Gulf Coast businessmen Cotton Fore and Roy Anderson III, partners in Broadwater Development LLC, purchased the President Casino Broadwater Resort, which included a casino and hotel, in 2005. Gary Armentrout, chief development officer for Foxwoods Development Co., said last month the tribe's initial plans for the Mississippi site include a $400 million resort that would include a golf course, marina, condominium residences and retail shops. The project, when completed, would be $1.2 billion, he said. The development would be governed by the Mississippi Gaming Commission and would pay state gaming taxes. The Choctaw Gaming Commission regulates the two Mississippi casinos -Golden Moon and Silver Star - operated by the Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians. Those casinos are not subject to state taxes. The Connecticut development, which opened in 1986 as a bingo hall, now includes 7,400 slots, 365 gaming tables, high-stakes bingo, a racebook, 35 restaurants, 1,400 hotel rooms, 55,000 square feet of meeting space, 25 shops, two showrooms, a B.B. King nightclub and a Hard Rock Cafe.