R & S Strategy Group recently announced it reached an agreement with the owners of a 33-acre property just north of Interstate 84 near Wood Village, Oregon, where the company hopes to build a casino. Owners Matt Rossman and Bruce Studer said they have a 5-year option on the site, and that Wood Village Mayor Patricia Smith supports the casino resort project.
In a statement, Rossman and Studer said, “Oregon and tribes can no longer ignore the major economic impact from a competing casino that will attract over 70 percent of its customer base from the Portland metro area. It is estimated that the Mohegan/Cowlitz casino alone will cost Oregon and tribes $1 billion,” referencing the Ilani Casino, a project of the Cowlitz Tribe and Mohegan Sun, set to open in spring 2017 near La Center, Washington.
The issue would require the approval of Oregon voters; the earliest a vote could take place would be in 2018. The Wood Village casino would be the privately owned and non-smoking casino in the state.
In 2010 Rossman and Studer attempted to develop a casino in Wood Village, and in 2012 at the former Multnomah Greyhound Park. Oregon voters defeated both measures. The Multnomah site now is owned by the Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde, owners of Spirit Mountain Casino, which is razing the property for a hotel and entertainment center. Grand Ronde Chairman Reyn Leno has not ruled out gaming but noted the process could be time-consuming and complicated.
The Grand Ronde tribe consistently has battled Rossman and Studer regarding a casino in the area. R & S Strategy’s new Wood Village site is less than two miles from the former racetrack.
