Poker Writer
The Scotts Valley Band of Pomo Indians suffered a major blow to its efforts to secure a casino when the U.S. Department of the Interior reversed its gaming approval for the Tribe.
The Scotts Valley Band of Pomo Indians is a tribe in Northern California, northwest of Sacramento. The Tribe had begun preliminary planning for a potential casino site in Vallejo. It had opened a preview casino, but just a few days later, its gaming rights were revoked.
The proposed casino is on a 160-acre site and would be built at a cost of $700 million.
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Not Enough Historical Connection for Vallejo Tribal Casino
The Department of the Interior determined that the Tribe lacked significant connections to the land it wished to build on in order to qualify for the Indian Gaming Regulatory restored lands exception.
William Kirkland, secretary for the Department of the Interior laid out why the Tribe was rejected for the Vallejo site:
I have determined the Band has not demonstrated the requisite significant historical connection. Consequently, the Vallejo parcel does not qualify as restored lands within the meaning of applicable law, and the Band may not conduct gaming on the parcel pursuant to (Indian Gaming Regulatory Act’s) restored lands exception. I provide no opinion on whether the Band may game on the parcel pursuant to another exception.
Kirkland did not rule out the Tribe potentially attempting again on another site.
Opposition From Other Tribes Put a Stop to Casino Effort
The proposed casino site came under fire from other local tribes, who opposed the Band of Pomo Indians’ plan to convert the Vallejo site into a casino. Strong opposition came from the Yocha Dehe Wintun Nation, who argued on behalf of the Patwin tribes. They said that the casino site would take away the ancestral lands of the Patwin tribe and also threaten the environmental resources in the area.
There is also a historical argument, as the Yocha nation says that the Pomo incorrectly claim that one of their historical chiefs lived in Vallejo. The chief died in 1903, and the Yocha nation says he never lived in Vallejo.
Such a connection would have potentially allowed the Tribe to enter the land into federal trust and turn it into a casino site.
The Yocha Dehe Wintun Nation currently runs the Cache Creek Casino Resort in Brooks, California. Their casino sits about 60 miles north of the proposed casino site in Vallejo.
The Yocha Nation denies that their opposition is about a rivalry with another tribe. They say it is about “preserving the integrity of the federal process.”
The Scotts Valley Band of Pomo Indians said it will mount a challenge in federal court.
