California’s Jamul Indian Village in San Diego County and Penn National Gaming broke ground last week on a controversial 0 million casino project about 20 miles from San Diego.
Hollywood Casino Jamul, which is scheduled to open in about two years, will include three stories and 200,000 square feet of gaming, 1,700 slots, 50 gaming tables and restaurants. It will create an estimated 2,500 temporary and permanent jobs. The tribe has been working on building the casino for almost 15 years, although it signed a gaming compact with the state in 1999.
According to Penn COO James Snowden, quoted by the Las Vegas Review-Journal, the casino will, “bring to fruition their vision to revitalize their reservation and become self-sufficient, while simultaneously sharing gaming revenue with local governments and charities.”
The tribe’s plans include directing traffic away from the town’s small commercial area and residences to minimize impact. It also is contributing money to redevelop State Route 94 to deal with increased traffic.
According to Tribal Chairman Raymond Hunter, “We have worked tirelessly for well over a decade listening to the voices of the community, addressing concerns, and ultimately developing a project that blends seamlessly into the region, while creating approximately 2,500 much needed construction and permanent jobs in our region. We look forward to continuing to be a good neighbor, as well as becoming a philanthropic leader and an active business partner in San Diego County.”
Board of Supervisors Chairman Dianne Jacob, who is also a resident of Jamul, has been a vocal opponent of the casino since its inception. She and other opponents say the casino will create more accidents and traffic gridlock, which will be especially dangerous during wildfires. She has persuaded fellow supervisors to authorize a lawsuit by the County against Cal Trans, the state’s department of transportation, for approving the casino’s encroachment permit.
Promising to join her is Jamulians Against Casinos, an organization of local residents.
Hunter commented about the procedures Cal Trans approved for the project. “We have worked with Caltrans to develop TMP procedures that will keep construction traffic moving in a safe and convenient manner. Rather than using existing access roads for our hauling operations that require no encroachment of public right of ways, we specifically planned for our hauling operations to travel to the southeast and away from the businesses and neighborhoods in Jamul to minimize any potential impact on the community.”
The tribe reacted to the lawsuit, “Our TMP (Transportation Management Plan) procedures will divert construction traffic to the southeast and away from the businesses and neighborhoods in downtown Jamul. We were shocked and dismayed to learn of threatened lawsuits by the County and a citizen’s group to overturn this carefully crafted and sensible traffic safety plan.”
The tribe counters that if Cal Trans is forced to withdraw its encroachment permit, the tribe will have no choice but to bring hauling and construction trucks through the town’s business district.
