The DeKalb County, Illinois Economic Development Committee recently voted to move to the full county board a resolution supporting the Prairie Band Potawatomi Nation’s effort to have 129 acres of land it owns in Shabbona to be taken into federal trust for a casino. It would be the first tribal facility in Illinois.
Tribal Chairwoman Liana Onnen told committee members, “We’re doing it to make sure things move along without any question. It’s going to be an economic engine and a job creator in this community.”
Tribal estimates indicated a casino would create hundreds of construction jobs and 400 permanent jobs with a $17 million annual payroll. The casino would attract an estimated 930,000 visitors annually and have a $12 million economic impact.
The casino would be located in Shabbona, population 1,000. The federally recognized tribe has held the land since 1829. As a sovereign nation, the tribe does not pay real estate tax on the land, but it has paid $127,000 to the county in the past six years under a 2007 agreement, Onnen said.
The tribe and the county signed an intergovernmental agreement in 2008. Under its terms, the county would receive the greater of $800,000 or 2.5 percent of the casino’s net annual profits plus a one-time payment of $15,000. The tribe also would make an annual payment of $2,500 to the county health department for gambling addiction services, and also would make annual contributions to area nonprofits.
The county board will vote on the resolution at its next meeting on August 19.
