Robert Gray, chief of the Pamunkey Tribe, was not invited to a recent public meeting regarding the tribe’s proposed $700 million casino resort in New Kent County, Virginia. Instead, county officials invited attorneys from the Minnesota-based law firm Foley Quigley, specialists in Indian land development, to speak about the federal land-trust process.
Gray said he wasn’t concerned that he wasn’t invited to the meeting. “It was New Kent’s prerogative not to invite us and we respect that. Indian gaming is something that the federal government allowed on federal trust lands. And it’s a way for tribes to obtain self-sufficiency and maintain their sovereignty so they can just stand up on their own.”
Gray said the casino will be an economic driver that creates jobs for tribal members and local residents. In addition, he said, it could help the Pamunkey build health care facilities and housing. He noted, “County administrative officials seemed to be excited by the idea and we shared their excitement.” However, county officials said they didn’t know about the proposed casino in New Kent until the day before the news was announced.
But Gray said, “We want to meet with the state and local officials to make it a win-win and avoid those types of problems that people want to throw out.” For example, at the public meeting, several residents were applauded when they cited bible verses referring to gambling as sin. “We want to help the locality because we’re Pamunkey Indians and Virginians. We’re not looking to just anger the locality and put something in an area that’s not designed for that,” Gray said earlier.
The Pamunkey Tribe purchased the 600-acre site in New Kent with financial assistance from Jon Yarbrough, an entrepreneur who has helped other Indian tribes develop projects. Gray said the tribe still is considering other sites. He added the tribe plans to submit its land-trust application by the end of the year, no matter where the land is located. “We’ve had a lot of interest from localities, even individuals. We’re trying to locate the land, continue to have conversations with leadership at the locality and state level,” Gray said.
