New movement on Mohawk Casino

BIA signals approval of environmental review

By FRITZ MAYER

WASHINGTON, DC — Sullivan County Chairman Chris Cunningham wrote a letter to Governor George Pataki on December 15 urging him to back the proposed St. Regis Mohawk casino at Monticello Gaming and Raceway. Cunningham said that because the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) offered a finding of “No Significant Environmental Impact” from the project, the governor should send a concurrence letter, which is one of the last hurdles to final approval of the facility.

Cunningham has long opposed the casino, but has said he will act in accordance with the will of a majority of the legislators, who favor the casino.

Members of the Mohawk tribe say the approval has been granted; however, a spokesperson for the BIA indicated there is still some paperwork to be completed.

Leslie Logan, a spokeswoman for the tribe, told the Associated Press on December 15 that the agency approved the environmental review, and that it was a “terrific Christmas gift for the tribe.”

But a spokeswoman for the BIA, Nedra Darling, told the Times Herald Record that letters to the governor regarding the matter were still being prepared. She said the letters may be sent the week of December 19, but that was not certain.

The timing of the letters could be important because if they reach Albany before January 1, 2007, the choice to move forward with the plan will fall to Pataki, who has said he will support the project. However, if the letters reach Albany after January 1, 2007, the choice to move forward will fall to Governor-Elect Elliot Spitzer, who has said he backs a casino in the Catskills, but has not said he specifically backs the Mohawk project at the raceway.

Critics of the project, meanwhile, are still considering a lawsuit challenging the decision of the BIA.

Richard Schrader, the legislative director for the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC), said studies show the proposed casino project would have widespread impacts on the environment of communities throughout the region, including miles-long back-ups on Route 17, sharply increased air pollution and accelerated sprawl. His organization has said the BIA should have required a full environmental impact statement (EIS), rather than the shorter environmental assessment, which was produced by the developers.

The NRDC, along with two dozen other environmental groups, will lobby Pataki and Spitzer in coming weeks to not move forward with the project without a full EIS.

Aside from fighting a possible lawsuit, the next step in the process for the Mohawks is to amend a revenue-sharing agreement with New York State before construction can begin.

The tribe has already agreed to provide the state with a percentage of slot machine revenues, and they have agreed to pay $20 million to Sullivan County, the Town of Thompson and the Village of Monticello.

Some of the agreements between the tribe, the state and the local municipalities will need to be approved by the New York State Legislature.