Tribe meets about casino plan

Thursday, Jan. 27, 2005 | 9:20 a.m.

GRAND FORKS, N.D. -- Representatives of the Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa came here Tuesday to talk about a proposed casino in the area, though they acknowledge it faces a number of hurdles.

Tribal consultant Bill Johnson said the project would require approval from state and federal officials, along with public support.

"Approval from the Department of Interior could be sometime between a year and 18 months, and then we need to go to the state," Johnson said. "It's a lot of paperwork ... and it doesn't move fast."

Grand Forks Councilman Hal Gershman said a casino could be good for the city.

"I think the development they're talking about will be beyond what a lot of people are thinking," he said.

Johnson said no site has been chosen for the project.

"We have to go through the process to show that land can be converted to reservation land," he said.

Tribal officials came to Grand Forks on Tuesday to meet first with nonprofit groups and later with community residents at a public hearing to discuss their proposal.

Turtle Mountain officials have suggested a $15 million, 1,000-slot machine casino that would employ 750 people in its first year.

It would require changes in state and federal gambling rules, and it has drawn opposition from other tribes who worry about competition with their own reservation casinos.

The Turtle Mountain Band said it has been looking at the idea of a casino in Grand Forks because its reservation in north central North Dakota is the smallest in the state and is facing a high unemployment rate, and its current casino in Belcourt does not have a regional market.