The Menominee Tribe’s reservation covers the entirety of Menominee County, Wisconsin. The county has the highest rate of poverty, the worst health and nearly the worst unemployment in the state. The tribe’s proposed off-reservation casino in Kenosha could turn all that around, said Gary Besaw, Menominee Kenosha Gaming Authority Chairman.
“With Kenosha, we see this as a godsend as far as employment, jobs and the boost to the economy,” Besaw said. But whether or not the tribe can move forward on the casino depends on Governor Scott Walker. He has until February 19, 2015 to make the decision.
One aspect of Walker’s criteria for approval was that all of the state’s tribes must agree too it. The Forest County Potawatomi, who operate a successful hotel and casino in Milwaukee, strongly oppose the plan.
Currently, the tribe’s mid-sized casino on its reservation provides most of the money for tribal programs. “We don’t generate enough income, because we’re a rural casino, to meet the tribal needs,” said Jim Reiter, general manager of the Menominee Casino Resort.
“We need the casino. We need help. This type of money coming in will help in a myriad of ways,” Besaw said.
