The Tulare County, California Board of Supervisors has formed an ad hoc committee to consider what position it will take towards the proposal by the Tulare River Tribe to move its Eagle Mountain Casino from its currently location to 40 acres on the outskirts of Porterville.
The relocation would include putting the land, which the tribe has owned for 25 years, into trust to make it reservation land. The tribe plans to expand the number of slot machines from 1,200 to 1,750 and add 10 table games to reach a total of 20. The casino would have 20,000 square feet and would include a 250-room hotel and convention center.
Eagle Mountain Casino has been operating at its current location for 20 years. It has more than 500 employees. Early in the process of relocating the tribe contacted the City of Porterville and the County to resolve any easy that might arise from the change.
Eric Coyne, the County’s deputy administrator for economic development, commented, “The committee was created so that the Supervisors are involved in the discussions and there are no unknowns when anything comes up for discussion.” County, city and tribal officials met recently to discuss the necessary mutual aid agreements for emergency services.
Coyle noted: “Anytime a new entity is created there is a new demand for services that is created. We provide a lot of those reciprocal services to cities transparently.”
For the casino to be allowed the Bureau of Indian Affairs will need to put the land into trust.
