Otter Tail County, Minnesota, a rural area where there is way may more water than land, and which has more than 1,000 lakes and hundreds of small lakeside resorts, will soon see work begin on the Shooting Star Casino by the White Earth Band of Chippewa Indians, which will be located on the shore of Star Lake.
The casino resort will include a hotel with 180 rooms, a casino with 850 slots, a spa, RV park and convention center that will accommodate 400. The tribe currently operates two other casinos.
The closest community to the casino is Dent, with a population of less than 200. The 270-acre development is not pleasing to environmentally-minded residents represented by a group called Star Lake Concern Citizens.
They released a statement last week that declared, “The location of this development in this sensitive ecological area is a threat not only to the wildlife but to the very activities that current residents enjoy.”
The project, which would be built on tribal trust land, is currently going through the federal environmental process. The casino could open as soon as 2018.
Bill Marsh, who is general manager of the tribe’s existing casinos, told the Star Tribune, “Our goal is not only to build a gaming facility, but also to strengthen the economy there. We believe the size of the hotel we’re building is going to create more demand in the area, and we would be bringing overflow to the other resorts.”
Some of the small, family-owned resorts in the area feel threatened by the development.
Although most groups in the area, including the County government, have concluded there isn’t much they can do about the project, the Star Lake Concerned Citizens are girding up for a battle against what it called “one of the most egregious environmental proposals considered within the state.”
However, the tribe says it is determined to protect the environment. Marsh said, “It’s important to note that White Earth always has had a mission of protecting the environment as much as possible,” adding, “We’ve spent over a year planning this project to make sure the impact to the environment has been mitigated.”
A local resident commented that he’d rather just allow one cabin on the lake—and leave it at that.
