The Board of Supervisors of Sonoma County, in northern California has unanimously opposed the proposed $600 million Shiloh Resort & Casino near Windsor.
The proposal includes 2,500 slot machines, a hotel with 200 rooms, six restaurants, a meeting center and spa. The Koi have partnered with the Chickasaw Nation. If built, it would be the third casino resort of such scope in the county.
The vote came without discussion, except for a remark by the chairman, James Gore, who said, “I respectfully oppose this development, but yet I just want to thank my colleagues for doing this in the right way.”
The resolution is the strongest opposition yet to the Koi proposal.
This brings the county in line with five tribes in the county who have opposed the proposal to put land into trust for the casino resort. They claim the tribe has no historical or ancestral connections to the land it wants to build on. They refer to the Koi as a “Non-Sonoma County Tribe.”
Three tribes previously submitted a letter to the board seeking their support. They included Graton Rancheria, Dry Creek Rancheria and Cloverdale Rancheria, two of which own casinos. The Kashia Band of Pomo Indians submitted their own letter that made the same points.
Lytton Rancheria Chairwoman Margie Mejia wrote, “Koi Nation’s attempts to manufacture a connection to Sonoma County are an affront to Sonoma County tribes such as our own, who have an extensively documented presence here.” She continued, “Unlike the Koi Nation, my tribe has distinct names and village sites within the County, our stories and traditions are tied to this cultural landscape, and our ancestors are buried here.”
Before the vote, Supervisor Gore said the resolution was his response to the letters from the tribes. “In essence, the reason that this resolution is before us in response to those letters, because we’re taking the lead from those other tribes,” he said.
A representative of the Koi, Vice Chairman Dino Beltran said the tribe didn’t expect the resolution.
He wrote the Press Democrat: “Since our fee to trust application was filed on Sept. 15, 2021, the Koi Nation has actively reached out to local elected and community leaders to have an open discussion and inform them of our resort and casino plans.” Beltran added, “We are surprised and troubled that this resolution was placed by Sup. Gore on the Board’s agenda without any notice to us.”
Before the vote, a public relations firm representing the Koi, invited residents with concerns to contact the tribe. The spokesman, Sam Singer, said “We’re sorry that individuals feel that way, but our doors are open.” He added, “Lines of communication have been open since the beginning and will remain that way.”
The opposition to the tribe notwithstanding, the Bureau of Indian Affairs has the last say on whether land is put into trust.
