Inside the Northern California Tribal Land Dispute
Two California tribes are at odds over a piece of land in Solano County that one wants to build a casino on, according to the Los Angeles Times. Scotts Valley Band of Pomo Indians asked the federal government to put the land, 45 minutes north of San Francisco, into trust. In 2019, the Trump administration denied the request, but that decision in 2022 was overturned by a federal judge. Since then, the Biden Administration is revisiting the issue.
“It’s a bit disrespectful to have a tribe come from 90-plus miles away to develop something in our homeland,” Yocha Dehe Tribal Chairman Anthony Roberts told the LAT.
Tribes, many of which were relocated by the federal government, have the right to request that land be put in trust and used for gambling projects. The projects – from Las Vegas-style casinos to bingo halls – have lifted tribes across the nation out of poverty.
The two tribes have a history of friendship that has been upended by the land dispute. The situation raises questions about how the federal government has chosen to manage land issues for dispossessed tribes.
Ex-NYC exec: Reject Mohegan Casino Bid
A former New York City executive is urging Governor Kathy Hochul to reject Mohegan Gaming’s application for a downstate casino license after his son died at Mohegan Sun in Connecticut due to alleged neglect of the casino staff, according to iGB.
Kamal Bherwani is calling for Mohegan’s joint bid with the Soloviev Group for a $4 billion casino and mixed-use complex near the United Nations complex on Manhattan’s East Side to be rejected.
Bherwani previously served under former mayor Michael Bloomberg and former mayor Rudy Giuliani. His son Ethan died of a fentanyl overdose May 18, after collapsing at a blackjack table at the Mohegan Sun casino in Connecticut. The younger Bherwani lay motionless on the floor for more than four minutes before any casino staff checked on him and a full 11 minutes before medics from the Mohegan tribe arrived, he said.
WarHorse Omaha to Open August 6, Run 24/7
The Nebraska Racing and Gaming Commission July 19 voted unanimously to approve the August 6 opening date for the Winnebago Tribe’s WarHorse Casino in Omaha, Neb. The casino was also approved to run 24 hours a day.
WarHorse will be the first casino in Omaha and just the second permanent racino in the state.
“In some ways, I’ve been working on this for about 30 years,” WarHorse CEO Lance Morgan told the Omaha World-Herald. “And so it’s almost hard to believe. A little surreal. But I can’t wait to actually see it open. And then, like anything else, we’ll just get to the next phase and the next phase and keep it growing.”
Bear River Casino Unveils New Additions
California’s Bear River Casino Resort has completed a round of renovations that included a new poker room, event space, restaurant and ballroom, the Times-Standard reported July 19. The new offerings were shown at the Fortuna Chamber of Commerce monthly mixer event.
Director of Table Games Justin Ciarabellini told the newspaper that “the Poker Den is open four days a week on Wednesday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday, and we offer poker tournaments at 6 p.m., every day that the Poker Den is open.”
Muscogee Nation to Break Ground on Oklahoma Casino in September
Muscogee Nation Gaming Enterprises will begin construction on a $100 million casino development in Coweta, Okla. in September, the tribe said Thursday. It is expected to be completed in the spring of 2026 with 750 slots, a 46-room hotel, a restaurant and pool.
The tribe also recently began construction of the Eufaula Casino Hotel & Resort. That $69.8 million project will be completed by November of 2025.
Simermeyer Named to National Native HOF Board
FanDuel’s E. Sequoyah Simermeyer was appointed to the National Native American Hall of Fame’s Board of Directors Thursday. A former chairman for the National Indian Gaming Commission, Simmermeyer and the board will “work to bring greater awareness to the significant contributions of contemporary Native people,” according to a press release.
“In the sports world, I would say that we have added a first-round draft pick to our already loaded board of directors,” James Parker Shield, founder and CEO of the National Native American Hall of Fame said via press release.
