It’s been 17 years since North Fork Rancheria of Mono Indians made a deal with Nevada-based Red Rock Resorts, a subsidiary of Station Casinos to build them a $350 million casino near Fresno, California.
The project never got beyond the initial development stages.
The California Supreme Court broke the longtime logjam and allows Governor Gavin Newsom to concur with the Department of the Interior’s decision to put off-reservation land into trust for the 2,200-member tribe.
Federal law specifies that in such a case it’s the governor’s decision and not the legislature whether to allow an off-reservation land into trust action. However opponents of the casino, including the neighbor Auburn Rancheria, took the tribe to court in a series of challenges. It argued that the legislature’s approval was required, despite federal law. The Supreme Court agreed to hear the case (United Auburn Indian Community v. Newsom) in 2017. Three and a half years later it ruled for the tribe.
The 61-acre reservation is near North Fork. The tribe says it is too small and out of the way for a casino. The off-reservation site is 305 acres in Madera, was is 42 miles from the reservation and located just off Highway 99.
Red Rock Resorts COO Bob Finch said in a statement, “Today’s ruling has been a long time coming for the North Fork Tribe and we are thrilled to be able to move forward with them on this very attractive project.” He added, “We expect that the tribe will be announcing more details regarding the casino in the near future.”
North Fork Rancheria Tribal Chairwoman Elaine Bethel-Fink added, “We are thrilled that the court has finally decided this case in our favor. Our tribal citizens and local community have been denied the advantages of tribal gaming—billions of dollars in economic benefits and thousands of jobs—for far too long.”
The casino plans call for 2,000 slots, 40 gaming tables and a 200-room hotel. Red Rock Resorts has a seven-year management contract with the tribe.
