Karuk Council Members Discuss Casino
Apr 28,
2004
Rumors have swirled around Siskiyou County after
an announcement in June 2003 of plans for a tribal
gaming casino near Yreka. At that time, officials
from the city of Yreka and from the county had
been invited to a meeting of the Karuk Tribal
Council to hear about the tribe's planning process
for a casino.
Local citizens began to weigh in on the issue with
their opinions, imagining what might be the pros
and cons for a casino in the area. Questions were
raised about the process of opening a casino, and
about the rights of the tribe and of local
citizens.
But throughout all of the public discussions, the
Karuk tribe itself has remained decidedly silent.
The only information about the tribe's plans came
from secondary sources and public speculation.
Members of the Karuk Tribal Council recently sat
down for an interview with the Siskiyou Daily
News, and explained some of the basics of their
work in pursuing an enterprise in Indian gaming.
Chairman Arch Super, Vice Chairman Leaf Hillman,
Secretary Florrine Super and Member-at-large Roy
Arwood met at the Karuk housing office in Yreka to
discuss their plans.
The Plans
Prior to the meeting, Super, the newly-elected
chairman, had explained that most of the
information about the casino plans "was never
given out," even to tribal members. Of the four
council members present, only the vice chairman
had been in office before November, and therefore
had more knowledge of the plans.
"We're getting the record straight, to the extent
that we can," said Hillman, vice chairman of the
Karuk tribe. "This is our best guess at this point
in time."
He explained that the tribe commissioned a
feasibility study for a gaming and hotel facility
in October 2003, and much of the information the
tribe has now is based on that study.
"We did the study to tell us - if we were to move
forward - that this is what the market in this
area would support initially," he said.
Based on the market assessment, the Karuk tribe is
envisioning an initial casino with 10,500 square
feet of gaming space and 349 "gaming positions,"
which would include machines and table games,
though not poker.
The market assessment also allowed for a 75-room
hotel, a 45-seat 24-hour casual grille/restaurant,
an indoor swimming pool with whirlpool, an
exercise room with free weights and fitness
machines, a newsstand/sundries shop and guest
laundry services.
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