The U.S. Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) has approved a plan by the Tule River Tribe of California to relocate its Eagle Mountain Casino from the current locale in Porterville, Tulare County to a 40-acre parcel in the same community, near the Porterville Airport Industrial Park. The site is less than 20 miles from the existing facility and will be considered an off-reservation acquisition, reports Indianz.com.
Moving the casino “would be in the best interest of the tribe and not detrimental to the surrounding community,” said BIA Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs Tara Sweeney, announcing her decision last month to the National Congress of American Indians.
Governor Gavin Newsom must also OK the plan, she pointed out. “A decision to acquire the approximately 40-acre parcel into federal trust will be made at a later date, when Governor Newsom concurs with the secretarial determination.”
“After years of hard work, the federal government moved the tribe’s casino relocation one step closer to making this dream a reality,” Chairman Neil Peyron told the Porterville Recorder.
