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Cayuga Tribe to End Land Claim in Exchange for Casino in Catskill
On May 23, 2007, the Cayuga Indian Tribe said that they would drop their land settlement case against the state in exchange for a smaller piece of land located in Finger Lakes.
They are also permitted to build a gambling casino in the Catskill Mountain area. Under the tribe's settlement with the state, the tribe would have to give up their claim to 64,000 acres of land in the Seneca and Cayuga Counties and accept the 10,000 acres of land in Finger Lakes.
Both counties would also have to receive a total of $15.3 million annually from the casino and the tribe would need to pay the taxes for the land.
The casino proposal faces some major problems, like the approvals from the 2 counties, the federal government, the legislature and the signature of Gov. Eliot Spitzer.
But the officials still commended the agreement. Spitzer spokesperson, Christine Pritchard, said that the proposal is still a long way off from government approval; it is still a good development on the case.
According to the Cayuga Tribe, if all goes well, the casino could be finished in 2 years. The Cayuga Tribe would have the right to buy 2/3 of the 10,000 acres of land in Cayuga County, 1/3 of land in Seneca and could not acquire more than 20% of any of the land in the municipality.
The agreement does not state where the casino should be built. Daniel French, the Cayuga Tribe's attorney, says that most people expect the casino to be built in the Catskills.
The agreement also states that Congress must stop the Seneca Cayuga Tribe from Oklahoma, which has also applied for a casino in New York from getting any land settlement deal.
David L. Dresser, the Ovid Town Supervisor and Chairman of the Native American Affairs Committee of the Seneca County Board of Supervisors, said that these financial and legal incentives hold both the counties and the state government without any harm. He further stated that this is beneficial because this agreement between the 2 sides would bring a sense of closure to the dispute.
Dresser said that the agreement is a compromise, but he personally believes that this is the best possible solution for both sides.
The Cayuga Tribe claims that the state government breached a treaty signed in 1794 that was supposed to protect the 64,015 acres that are owned by the tribe.
The Seneca Cayuga tribe of Oklahoma was later added as a plaintiff in the case. A federal court also awarded the tribe $247 million, but the court of appeals reversed that decision in favor of the state government. The U.S. Supreme Court declined to review the case.
Sunday, June 17 , 2007
Brian Letendre