The Guidiville Band of Pomo Indians has, after many years of litigation, given up its pursuit of a $1.2 billion off-reservation casino resort at Point Molate, overlooking San Francisco Bay.
The tribe had sued the Department of the Interior for $750 million, and also naming the city of Richmond, which it accused of backing out of a deal to host an Indian casino at Point Molate a 270-acre former U.S. Navy base. Last week a federal judge imposed a settlement.
The city issued a statement: “Under the judgment, the city will pay no money damages to plaintiffs, no casino will be built at Point Molate, and plaintiffs’ claims will be dismissed with prejudice.”
This meant the tribe also did not have to pay damages sought by the city.
The tribe had hoped to use Section 20 of the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act, which allows tribes recognized after the 1988 act was adopted to put land into trust. The tribe was recognized in 1992.
However, the Bureau of Indian Affairs determined in 2011 that the tribe had no historical connections to Point Molate, which is more than 100 miles from its tribal headquarters.
Last August the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled on the Richmond-tribal dispute, but didn’t decide the tribe’s complaint against the federal government. Last week’s decision ties up the loose ends.
It removes any hindrance to the City of Richmond developing Point Molate, which is one of the most desirable undeveloped properties near San Francisco.
The settlement mandates that when the land is sold at Point Molate, the city will get half and the tribe and Upstream Development, the tribe’s partner, will get half.
Richmond Mayor Tom Butt hailed the settlement: “This is not the end, but hopefully it is the beginning of the end, of a process that began 22 years ago,” he wrote. “What we have is a road map to the eventual development of Point Molate as a vibrant recreational asset to Richmond and a successful new neighborhood that will provide homes, create jobs and provide much-needed revenue for the city.”
The city hopes to build 670 residential units on the land and preserve 200 acres in open space and an historic winery with structures more than a century old.
The city acquired the Point Molate property for $1 when the navy closed the base in 1995. In 2004 the tribe proposed a $1.2 billion hotel and casino on three acres.
The city’s voters rejected the proposal in 2010 and the city council took a formal vote to do the same the following year. The tribe sued and for the last decade the lawsuit has continued.
