Supervisors to Consider Casino Plan

By Mike Fitch, Auburn Journal

An Auburn-based Indian tribe's plans for opening the county's first gaming casino may get a boost from the Placer County Board of Supervisors Tuesday.

The United Auburn Indian Community wants to open a 200,000-square-foot casino in the unincorporated Sunset Industrial area. The 58-acre site is south of Lincoln near the intersection of Athens and Industrial  Avenues.

At Tuesday's meeting, supervisors will consider a proposed memorandum of understanding that calls on the county to support the tribe's bid to have the proposed site placed in federal trust so it can be  operated as a gaming casino.

In return, the tribe would agree to follow county zoning laws, design guidelines, building standards and other planning rules while developing the casino and other projects proposed for tribal lands.

The legally binding agreement would require the tribe to pay for law enforcement and other services the county provides to the casino and other tribal lands, and also to pay fees and taxes that non-Indian  developers normally would have to pay.

"The premise for the negotiations was that the tribe was willing to be treated like any other commercial applicant," said County Counsel Tony La Bouff in a memo to supervisors.

La Bouff added that the proposed agreement also offers important incentives to the tribe.

"Having good relationships with its neighbors will be helpful in the long run for business and minimize litigation costs," he said.

La Bouff told the Roseville City Council Wednesday that the agreement would be the first of its kind in the nation.

The casino likely would offer bingo, video games, and card tables. The project would include a restaurant, offices, gift shop, and 3,500 parking spaces.

In a press release Friday, county officials called the proposed site suitable for a casino.

"The Athens-Industrial site appears to have a combination of attributes which make it a more suitable site than other places in the county," stated county Planning Director Fred Yeager.

He noted that the site has easy access to roads and to utilities and the means to provide fire protection and other emergency services.

It also is far from any urban residential neighborhoods.

"Putting a casino in an industrial area where housing isn't allowed and where access to a major highway would not pass by residential areas greatly reduces possible impacts or inconveniences to  residents," Yeager said in the prepared statement.

The proposed casino is controversial in Roseville because the site is just five miles from the city's border.

On Wednesday, the Roseville council voted 4-1 to send a letter asking county supervisors to delay making a decision for 30 days, in part so alternative sites can be considered.

Council members also wanted the letter to note that the city opposed gambling.

The Indian tribe can proceed with its bid to have the site placed in trust by the federal government even if supervisors reject the memorandum of understanding.

Under state and federal law, though, the tribe will not have to abide by local planning rules or reimburse the county for services if the casino is built on federal trust land and the tribe doesn't sign the  memorandum of understanding with the county.

Composed of Maidu and Miwok Indians, the United Auburn Indian Community has no federal land in trust now, but Congress rules in the Auburn Indian Restoration Act of 1994 that the tribe is entitled to such  land in Placer County.

The county's interest in negotiating the agreement rests partly on the belief that the 1994 act is a clear signal the federal government likely would allow the casino project to proceed despite any community  opposition.

The Auburn Rancheria was established for the group in 1917 but the federal government divided most of that land among the tribe's members in the 1950s.

Supervisors are scheduled to meet at 9 a.m. in the County Administrative center at 175 Fulweiler Ave. Discussion of the casino memorandum of understanding is set for 2 p.m.

Amy Yannello of the Press-Tribune in Roseville contributed to this story.

Copyright © 1999, Auburn Journal