Carcieri-based challenge brought against Cowlitz Indian Tribe casino plan

From Indian Country Today:

"

A coalition of forces has launched a Cariceri challenge in a lawsuit seeking to block the federal government’s decision to take 152 acres of land into trust for the Cowlitz Indian Tribe to build a casino resort near Le Center, Washington.

The lawsuit was filed in U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia Jan. 31, just over a month after the Interior Department’s Assistant Secretary-Indian Affairs Larry Echo Hawk announced that the trust lands will serve as Cowlitz’ initial reservation and that the tribe intends to conduct Class III gaming there under the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act (IGRA).

Clark County is the lead plaintiff in the law suit. It is joined by the City of Vancouver, Wash., an anti-Cowlitz casino group called Citizens Against Casino Shopping, and two individuals who live near the Cowlitz’s proposed casino site, who claim the environment, their quality of life and property values would be negatively impacted by a nearby casino, and two non Indian gaming companies. Dragonslayer, Inc., and Michels Development LLC together own four La Center card rooms that stand to lose substantial business to a full scale casino resort."

 

See the full story HERE.

 

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