Casino news source: The Independent - http://www.indeonline.com/
Community rages over casino plans
By MATTHEW RINK
Matthew.Rink@IndeOnline.com
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An Indian tribe and a casino.
Two cities sharing one major highway.
The promise of thousands of jobs, but the consequence of transforming a city forever.
In 2006, the Eastern Shawnee Tribe of Oklahoma courted Massillon and Canal Fulton with a plan to build a resort-style casino on large tracts off of Ohio 21.
Lobbyists and developers promised a “family destination” where a casino was a small piece of a big picture. They brought renderings that showed hotels, shopping centers and entertainment complexes.
“There were a number of people that expressed strong interest and support, partly because of the economic benefits and jobs that would come of it,” said Terry Casey, a lobbyist for the tribe. “In any community, there is support and there are people that don’t want any change at all.
“The general area is very attractive because of the population that is there and because of the highway, the infrastructure and the closeness of other tourism-related attractions,” he said.
Though the plan was first brought to Massillon a year prior, the tribe formally asked City Council to sign an intergovernmental agreement in April, stressing that time was of the utmost importance in its land-claim lawsuit. The agreements, had they been signed, were said to bolster the tribe’s legal standing.
In 2005, the Eastern Shawnee sued the state and dozens of cities and counties across Ohio in U.S. District Court, seeking thousands of acres of former reservation land and hunting, gathering and fishing territory it occupied until the late 1830s.
Massillon City Council held a series of public meetings to gauge the community’s response to the plan. What it got was hundreds of residents who dreamt of job opportunities in the shell of a former industrial mecca and hundreds more who said it would bring drugs and prostitution.
“It certainly got our citizens motivated on both sides of the fence and that’s important when you deal with an issue like this,” Massillon Mayor Frank Cicchinelli said. “That project would have changed Massillon forever.”
When the tribe came up short of a full-fledged revenue-sharing plan, it would not settle for the letter of interest City Council signed instead.
“There were parts that were intriguing when you look at development projects, however, we did not have enough information to base an intellectual decision on if we wanted to go down that path with a developer,” Cicchinelli said. “Three thousand to 5,000 jobs was intriguing, something that you just can’t pass up. But because we were unable to get the information we wanted, we were unable to come out in favor of it.”
By late April, developer Steve DiPietro, who also owns the Republic Steel site, introduced the project to Canal Fulton City Council.
Residents packed City Hall, many speaking against the plan. Opponents protested outside of one meeting, where the city leaders came up short on the required votes to continue talks with the tribe.
Later, it was revealed that Mayor John Grogan wrote a letter of support to the tribe following the vote. The tribe conducted a survey of the community in August, and the city followed with its own study of its residents’ feelings.
“When the initial proposal came to us, and in the coming weeks, there seemed to be some inconsistencies coming from the tribe and their representatives in regard to timelines and deadlines and what had been transpiring in federal court,” Canal Fulton City Councilman Victor Colaianni said. “I was uncomfortable with that and I was uncomfortable with the divisiveness it was causing in the community.”
Without any agreement with the city, the tribe forged ahead, eventually reaching a land-purchasing agreement for 49 acres at Ohio 21 and Arcadia Street in Lawrence Township with a private landowner, Nathan Glick of the limited-liability company N&N Development.
But the city, following months of fighting between public officials and residents, took the results of its own survey and urged the tribe to end its plans.
“I consider it a dead issue,” Colaianni said. “I don’t think it would be a smart business practice if they would continue to push it.”
The tribe is asking the federal court to accept a series of legal settlements, which include the site in Lawrence Township. A ruling could be made by the end of January.
“The tribe has several options,” Casey said. “There is nothing under federal law that requires an intergovernmental agreement. The tribe’s viewpoint right now is we’re focused on finalizing things at the federal court in Toledo.” |
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