Interior Department temporarily blocks casino deal

Monday, May 23, 2005 | 9:05 a.m.

The federal Interior Department on Friday temporarily blocked a proposal by the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs to build a casino in Cascade Locks but left open the possibility that it will approve the deal later.

The agency's decision comes more than a month after the tribes and Gov. Ted Kulongoski signed an agreement setting out the terms for a casino in the community in the scenic Columbia River Gorge.

The department said granting approval now would be premature because the tribes have not yet purchased the property where the casino would be built.

"Only after the tribes have acquired the Cascade Locks land into trust, will the department consider the terms and conditions of a timely submitted compact," the department said in a letter to Kulongoski.

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