Poker face pleases both sides of debate

Renewed casino dreams begin to manifest

By FRITZ MAYER

MONTICELLO, NY — He said he was going to be “guarded” with his comments and he was true to his word. At a brief press conference amid a day of hearing testimony and touring possible casino sites, Larry Echohawk, the person who perhaps more than any other will determine whether Indian casinos ever come to Sullivan County, gave absolutely no hint about the direction he might be leaning.

He said, “This is simply a fact-finding listening opportunity for me to learn about the proposed developments here. There are similar developments being proposed across the United States in regards to off-reservation casinos.” He added that the U.S. Department of the Interior (DOI) would ultimately make decisions on the proposals but he would not indicate a timeframe.

Echohawk is a newly confirmed assistant secretary of the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) and, as such, is charged with reviewing the current off-reservation casino policy of the DOI, which was instituted by the former DOI Secretary Dirk Kempthorne in February 2008. That policy basically prohibits the department from taking land into trust for tribes to open casinos, unless the land in question is within commuting distance of the tribe’s reservation.

None of the three tribes hoping to open casinos in Sullivan County have reservations close to the area. When Echohawk has finished his review, he will make a recommendation to the new secretary of the DOI, Ken Salazar, about how to treat off-reservation casinos.

Interestingly, Echohawk’s nomination was held up by opposition from a few of the 564 tribes that are recognized by the BIA because they feared he was opposed to off-reservation casinos. This was based on actions he took while he served as attorney general of Idaho in the ’90s when he helped to strengthen a state law prohibiting the establishment of off-reservation casinos.

On the other hand, on August 14, he signed a new reservation of about 147 acres into existence near Grand Rapids, MI for a tribe that will use the land for a casino. (The BIA did not respond to a question about why this project was allowed to go forward.)

In any case, Senator Chuck Schumer, who was sitting next to Echohawk at the news conference in Monticello on August 26, said he was pleased that the “first step” of the process of possibly changing the policy had started, and that he believed the creation of the existing policy was ideologically driven and not based on the merits of the proposed casinos or the law.

Environmentalists and others said, on the other hand, they were pleased that Echohawk made time to hear them and their concerns.

During two hearings held before the press conference, to which the press and public were not invited, numerous officials, business people, lawmakers and activists delivered testimony that has often been heard in the past: that casinos are needed here to provide jobs and growth and that casinos will bring unwelcomed congestion, pollution and the kind of development that the county does not need or want.

However, at least some of the pro-casino advocates now seem to be attempting to reach out to the environmentalists and others who have opposed casinos.

Sullivan County Legislature Chairman Jonathan Rouis and Town of Thompson Supervisor Tony Cellini issued a joint statement that said, in part, “It is important to note that while we support this type of gaming in Sullivan County, we recognize that it’s not for every community. By locating these resorts in the center and on the eastern end of the county, we are able to ensure development in the communities that need it most, and preserve our open space and farmland in the communities to the west.”