As chairman of the Menominee Nation, Craig Corn had been rehearsing the much-anticipated annual State of the Tribes speech he was expected to deliver to the Wisconsin legislature on February 13. However, instead, the speech was given by the tribe’s new Chairwoman Laurie Boivin, who was elected by the tribal legislature on February 9—a defeat for Corn. Boivin was voted into the tribal legislature in January.
All ears were on the speech to hear Boivin’s comments on her tribe’s efforts to build an $800 million Hard Rock casino complex in Kenosha. The Menominee are waiting for Governor Scott Walker’s decision on the project, while the Potawatomi and Ho-Chunk tribes strongly oppose it.
But those waiting for controversial statements from Boivin in her 47-minute speech must have been disappointed when her only reference to the topic was, “Poverty and the resulting effects is a primary concern for our tribes. While Indian gaming has led a few tribes out of poverty, many of our nations continue to struggle with varying degrees of poverty.” Menominee County, home of the tribe’s reservation, is one of the poorest in the state with tribal unemployment at 16.8 percent.
The rest of Boivin’s speech focused on other poverty issues, tribal mascots in public schools and the environment.
The top elected leader of one of Wisconsin’s 11 Native American tribes delivers the speech each year and traditionally seeks to avoid controversy. Last year, then-Chairman of the Lac Courte Oreilles tribe, Gordon Thayer, accused state officials of spreading misinformation about spearfishing and criticized Republican lawmakers for passing a bill relaxing the state’s iron mining regulations. State Rep. Bill Kramer walked out.
Gary Besaw, chairman of the Menominee’s Kenosha Gaming Commission, said the change of leadership will have no impact on the tribe’s effort to convince Walker to approve the casino. “This has no negative impact at all. Our Kenosha project will continue without a hiccup.”
Forest County Potawatomi spokesman Ken Walsh said tribal leaders agree with the Menominee on “nine out of 10” issues before them. However, in reference to the Seminole Tribe of Florida’s ownership of the Hard Rock brand, Walsh said the Kenosha Hard Rock “is still going to send hundreds of millions of dollars to the Florida tribe that is going to build it and run it.”
The U.S. Department of Interior approved the Kenosha proposal last August and the Menominee made a deal with Hard Rock in October. Walker has the final word on the project. He initially said he would decide the issue by October 2013. But Wisconsin Department of Administration Secretary Mike Huebsch said Walker may not make a decision on the Kenosha casino until after the November election. He has one year from August 23, 2013, the date the federal Bureau of Indian Affairs approved the Menominee’s application for an off-reservation casino. Walker also could request a one-time, six-month extension.
The state has hired a legal firm to assist in the decision-making process. A national economic analysis firm also will be hired to evaluate the proposed casino’s impact it could have on southeastern Wisconsin and other parts of the state, as well as analyze the effects of expanded gambling in Illinois.
Huebsch said, “I have not asked the governor which direction he wants to go on this. It will either be a very strong addition to the state, or it won’t. We’re working to determine we’re headed in the right direction and giving the governor the opportunity to make that informed decision. There is a best-case scenario, and that’s what we’ll find,” Kleefisch said. Lieutenant Governor Rebecca Kleefisch stated the proposed casino issue has been called “a tale of two cities,” Milwaukee versus Kenosha. “This is a tale that involves all the taxpayers of Wisconsin due to the compacts and gaming money paid to the state,” she said.
The proposed $808 million development would include the casino, a hotel, restaurant and entertainment venue on the site of the former Dairyland Greyhound Park. Menominee officials said the project would create 3,000 permanent jobs and 2,000 temporary jobs during construction. “If those numbers prove out, it will be a significant factor. It was enough to where we now needed to look at these numbers. Detractors said, ‘They promised you the sun, moon and stars.’ Yes. Now we need to determine if they can deliver the sun, moon and stars,” Huebsch said.
