The Cowlitz Indian Tribe of Washington state has begun site work on its 152-acre proposed 0 million casino site near La Center.
Cowlitz Tribal Chairman Bill Iyall told the Reflector: “We’re doing preliminary site work to prepare for winter. We are doing our due diligence to protect the site, to protect the wetland area so it isn’t impacted by ongoing construction.”
Iyall said the tribe would hold a groundbreaking ceremony year at the beginning of the year, with a possible opening of the casino in 2017.
The casino remains the target of several lawsuits filed by Clark County, three card rooms based in La Center, the city of Vancouver and a fellow gaming tribe, the Confederated Tribes of the Grand Ronde, operators of the Spirit Mountain Casino in Grand Ronde, Oregon.
The tribe announced its plans in 2000, shortly after the federal government recognized it. Ever since that time it has fended off efforts to prevent it from building a casino. The Mohegan tribe has been financial and operational backers of the Cowlitz’ casino effort.
In 2014 a federal judge upheld the decision by the Bureau of Indian Affairs to put the 152-acre land in La Center into trust. They argue that the Carcieri v. Salazar Supreme Court decision prevents the land from being put into trust. The decision says that tribes recognized after 1934 cannot put land into trust.
The D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals, one step down from the Supreme Court, is expecting briefs in the case within two weeks.
