Senecas backed off previous plan
Monroe County, New York Executive Maggie Brooks has gone on record saying she opposes a Seneca Indian casino in her jurisdiction, according to WXXI News.
In a recent letter to Governor Andrew Cuomo, Brooks said she will fight any effort by the tribe to try and declare sovereign land in the county to develop a casino. The Senecas recently acquire 32 acres of land in the town of Henrietta, but tabled a plan to build a casino there, citing local opposition.
“I’ve been given a lot of information but I wanted to hear directly from people and that input has really made me realize that to have a casino, a Native American casino in Monroe County at this time is just not in the best interest of the county,” Brooks said.
The Seneca Nation responded with a brief statement saying Brooks’ stance is puzzling. “The Seneca Nation clearly outlined our position on potential casino expansion in a May 8 letter to (County Legislator Justin Wilcox),” wrote the tribe. “Nothing has changed. While the timing of the County Executive’s statement is curious, our position remains as it was two months ago.”
But the Senecas did not say they would never introduce another casino proposal for Monroe County.
According to the Rochester Democrat and Chronicle, Brooks’ letter also went to the U.S. Department of the Interior. She said she opposes any renegotiation of New York state’s compact with the Senecas. That deal gives the tribe exclusive rights to operate casinos in parts of western New York, but no more than the three gaming halls that it already has in Buffalo, Niagara Falls and Salamanca.
The letter said Brooks would have a role in the federal process to determine whether land within Monroe County can be declared sovereign.
“Out of courtesy to you, I want to inform you that I intend to formally oppose such a designation in the event an application is made to the federal Department of Interior,” Brooks, a Republican, wrote.
Democrats in the Monroe County legislature also opposed a local casino. But another town in Monroe County would welcome a Seneca gaming hall. The Gates Town Board supports the idea. “As long as my residents continue to support it, I’ll continue to fight for it,” said Gates Supervisor Mark Assini.
Former Rochester Mayor William A. Johnson Jr., who has lent his support to the No More Casinos Coalition, praised Brooks’ letter. “To have Maggie Brooks come out and take this stance I think really is the proverbial nail in the coffin,” Johnson said of the Senecas’ hopes of developing a local casino. “I just don’t see how they can make a claim that this community would welcome them when you have the most influential, the most powerful county leader saying, ‘Absolutely not.’”
