A proposal by the Wilton Rancheria to build the first casino in Sacramento County, a few miles from the California capitol, is generating the same kinds of debates that proposed Indian casinos usually spark.
The epicenters of this debate are the cities of Galt and Elk Grove.
The tribe lost its tribal status and land about 50 years ago, only to regain its recognition a few decades later. The tribe remained landless and is searching for a site for a casino and 12-story hotel in one of those cities.
The idea is generating joy and fury, depending on whether you might want to get a job at the proposed casino, or perhaps would like to see a “ghost mall” revived or if you don’t want to see a casino in your neighborhood.
The tribe’s first choice is Galt, but it’s more than willing to shift its gaze to Elk Grove if Galt doesn’t work out.
A third option is the tribe’s old reservation in Wilton, which the tribe no longer owns. But that option is not at the top.
The tribe has held the first of what may be many public meetings, when it floated the various options under consideration. The tribe would prefer to work with a town or area where the opposition isn’t extreme.
City officials in Elk Grove are starting to look at the proposal seriously, and councilman Steven Detrick told the Sacramento Bee that it really has not choice in the matter.
“ “A lot of people think we have the power to say yes or no,” Detrick said. “All we can do is say, ‘If you guys were to come here, these are the concerns.’ ”
Impacts that could be major concerns include the possible need for more police and fire services or more roads.
Casinos can often impact local businesses as well.
Cheryl Schmit of Stand up for California, a casino watchdog group, observed, “Your gas stations. Your hotels. Your restaurants. Small businesses operate sometimes on a shoestring. It doesn’t take much to take away their market and they’re done.”
The part of California near Sacramento already hosts ten of the largest Indian casinos in the state, such as Thunder Valley, Red Haw Casino, Shingle Springs, Cache Creek Casino Resort and the Jackson Rancheria Casino Resort.
The magnet drawing all of these casinos is the San Francisco Bay Area, which has a large Asian population, and is a key market for gaming.
